Serendipity: The New Career Science

Written by Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D.


My neighbor "Ed" found his career, he says, when he literally fell fromrepparttar choir loft intorepparttar 101659 church organ. He was fascinated byrepparttar 101660 specialist who showed up to fixrepparttar 101661 damage. Ed began by sweeping uprepparttar 101662 shop, then served an apprenticeship. Now he owns a firm that repairs church organs all overrepparttar 101663 Southeast US.

Three Dog Bakery was formed when a dog refused to eat. The vet suggested, "Why don't you cook for her?" The dog's owner had no idea where to begin. He modified a cookie recipe andrepparttar 101664 dog wolfed it down. That wasrepparttar 101665 beginning of an empire.

Maybe you suspect that most people find careers this way, rather than through a linear step-by-step process.

If so, you'd be right. Researchers are beginning to find examples of serendipity in career paths of successful professionals.

Serendipity means that you were influenced by an external event that appears beyond your control. You sit next to someone on an airplane who says, "I have been trying to fill a position…" And it's preciselyrepparttar 101666 position you have been seeking forrepparttar 101667 past six months.

Ten Career Tips to Share With Your Children (And you too!)

Written by Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D.


Q. "What do you want to be when you grow up?" A. "Something that hasn't been invented yet."

Most of us were brought up to study hard, get good grades, choose a "practical" college major, and strive for a "good job."

Talk to a stranded midlife career-changer and you realizerepparttar game has changed. Yesterday's rules prepared us to be passengers on a large ocean liner that promised a smooth voyage. Today we realize that ocean liner turned out to berepparttar 101658 Titanic and we need to keep ourselves afloat on a small life raft if we want to survive.

Here are some tips to help your child learn not only to survive, but to thrive and grow in a chaotic world.

1. Fromrepparttar 101659 first day of kindergarten, encourage your child to build on strengths rather than focus on limitations.

Does she spend hours studying models of cars forrepparttar 101660 last twenty years? Maybe she'll become an auto mechanic -- or maybe she'll parlay her ability to classify detailed information into a career as a biologist or pharmacist.

2. Encourage your child to choose a field of study based on his or her natural abilities and passions, not "what will get me a job."

Claudia Kennedy,repparttar 101661 Army's first female three-star General, majored in philosophy. In her book Generally Speaking, she claims philosophy prepared her to become a top-level intelligence officer. Carly Fiorino, famed CEO of Hewlett-Packard, studied medieval history. And Michael Lewis, financial writer and best-selling author of Liars Poker, was an art history major.

3. Assure your children that few mistakes are fatal.

Did your child fail a course? Face rejection from a first-choice college? Most of us can't avoid an occasional failure, but we can learn bounce-back attitudes as soon as we can talk.

Yolanda Griffith, WNBA basketball star, dropped out of a premier program due to pregnancy. She returned to a lower-ranked college program, baby in tow, and now plays forrepparttar 101662 Sacramento Monarchs.

I once taught a student who had flunked out of junior college following a close call withrepparttar 101663 legal system. After a four-year stint inrepparttar 101664 US Navy, she returned to college, maintained a dean's list grade point average, and went on to a top law school.

Cont'd on page 2 ==>
 
ImproveHomeLife.com © 2005
Terms of Use