Career coach shows students how to discover their individual talent and career path.
Getting a college degree is often referred to as the key to a stable, well-paying career. Yet, in the workforce more than a third of college graduates are mal-employed or in jobs that don’t require college degrees, according to data from North Eastern University.
Last Tuesday Helene Naftali, psycho-therapist and author of the self-published book, Own your zone a wake-up call to parents, student, and educators, gave a lecture to Kean’s feature writing class about how to uncover their own unique talent and use them to be successful.
Naftali is owner of oneTRUEzone a coaching program that helps young people discover their own distinctive career path. With a Master’s degree in counseling and social work and more than 20 years of experience in finance, Naftali said she uses her abilities to uncover the blind spots of others to help them, find their “own zone.”
“You own your zone when you determine without any doubt that you’re on the right path,” Naftali said.
There is often a disconnect between college and career, Naftali said in her lecture. The process of figuring out one’s talents and then applying them to a career is often missed by students, parents and educators, she said. Also, students should focus on their gifts to cope in today’s career fields which are constantly evolving.
During her lecture Naftali emphasized the idea of finding your “sweet spot” or establishing a clear sense of direction early to avoid wasting time and money in college.
Even when college students graduate and find themselves in a top position at a company they may discover they are unhappy in their field. Almost 70% of people in the workforce are unhappy with their jobs according to a poll from Gallup.
One of Naftali’s clients found themselves in an un-filling career after spending several years and lots of money in college. After he graduated he got in contact with his old college advisor.
So, how do students find their unique talent and use it to build a promising career? Naftali gave the class a few tips:
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Ask others who know you to describe your best traits. This often reveals characteristics that you didn’t know about yourself, Naftali said.
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Find a moment in time when you were most happy.
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Create a list of your qualities and narrow them down to the top five.
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Seek out 3-D career experiences.
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Real Job shadowing- Ask a person with a job you’re interested in and ask to watch them work for 20 minutes.
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Virtual job shadowing- websites like virtualjobshadow.com allows student to explore different careers.
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Try participating internships.
Ultimately, each individual person has their own unique gifts, and only they are able to identify it.
“Tie it [your gift] with what you are passionate about, and in your zone, you’ll find success and more possibilities,” Naftali said.
For more information on Helene Naftali and oneTRUEzone visit www.onetruezone.com.