What is a career really?
by Eman Payne, March 25, 2022
In a very recent interview I was given a seemingly simple request:
“Tell me about your career in your own words.”
It’s not a very unexpected question in job interviews, or a topic that I was unfamiliar with, but somehow the wording gave me pause. Until that moment in time, I hadn’t realized that my entire work history, good or bad, was my career. For my entire childhood and well into my adult life, I had presumed that a career was a destination, something that we had strived for, and could only reach after a long time traveled. In my mind, most of my previous work experiences were just jobs along the way to a career. That realization threw me off balance, and took me by surprise.
I have worked pretty much my entire “academic career” while I put myself through school, often working two or three jobs at a time. The jobs that I have taken along this journey have most often been for the basic purpose of paying off school and additional expenses.
Over the last few years since graduating from college, I’ve been on a quest to find the right job. I graduated with my Bachelors of Arts in Television, Film and Media Studies, with an emphasis in Production from California State University, Los Angeles in 2018. And, although I interviewed a number of places after graduating, I didn’t have a guaranteed paid position lined up, or a place of my own, so I lived with my brother and his family for a few months, and then went back to my mother’s house for a year while I saved up to pay off my school loans and credit card debt. I’ll elaborate more on that in the future.
Indeed has an article that goes more into what a career is in the grand scheme of things, and I have provided a link below for review:
Exploring a Definition
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a career as follows:
ca·reer /kəˈrir/ noun
an occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person’s life and with opportunities for progress.
While Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines a career as:
a profession for which one trains and which is undertaken as a permanent calling.
I believe that I’ve always sided with the latter definition seen in Merriam-Webster’s definition, therefore, it’s not too difficult to imagine how I began to question the significance of a word.
If you’ve ever had a job, you know that the process before interviews is relatively simple in theory, for those of you haven’t, or if it’s been a while, I have provided some explanations of how it might go below.
The Never-ending Quest!
Step one:
You search and search until you find a job posting (most often with a job description), or are alerted to some opportunity by a friend or recruiter in your network.
The significance of utilizing your network for positions cannot be ignored.
Various surveys compiled by Linkedin suggest that between “70–85 percent of workers found work through their network (Linkedin, 2016).”
Various surveys compiled by Linkedin suggest that between “70–85 percent of workers found work through their network (Linkedin, 2016).”
Step two:
You create a resume, and pour over your most recent and relevant work history and education, looking for applicable skills, experiences, or circumstances in-line with the job you are applying for. Prior to applying for a job, you need to adapt your resume for the job and the first level’s boss, the ATS tracking system. An “ATS”, or Application Tracking System, is the gatekeeper. Hopefully, you’ve spent enough time catering your job to match the job description as closely as possible in honesty and earnestness. The job description is your ally, and your strongest weapon, but can easily be used against you. If you do not take the time to ensure that your resume has relevant keywords from the job description with the job you are applying for, you can quickly be left out of the running and never make it to the interview.
Step three: the cover letter.
Keep it short and simple by answering these questions:
Paragraph one: Who are you? What job are you applying to? Where did you hear about it?
Paragraph two: How can you be a benefit to the team you are applying?
Use this space to highlight some notable contributions in your last company that you could not elaborate on.
Paragraph three: Salutations
“Thank you.”
Thank the recruiter formally and respectfully.
If this was all that you needed to do, then everyone would ace any interview, and get any job they applied for. But, few companies can employ more than one person for the job.
After you finish your resume, cover letter and have then used your internet sleuthing to find and inquire about said position, make sure that you are rehearse your work experience. It is especially important to review experiences related to the position which you are applying. Find and write out ways that you will respond to questions about your weaknesses, and your accomplishments.
In a recent presentation on job searches, resumes, and the interview process. provided by the IGDA SD (International Game Developers Association, San Diego), some helpful suggestions and perspectives were provided.
“Provide the whole truth.”
“Provide the whole truth.” It was said, that if you only highlight things that you think would be good for your job, you aren’t giving the recruiters or hiring managers the best picture of you. By allowing them to get the best picture of you and your strengths and even your interests, you painting a better picture, as opposed to a simple sketch. You aren’t doing anyone any favors if you hold back some of your achievements in fear that you might be overqualified, or may appear to be bragging.
Lastly, if you haven’t heard of the “STAR Method” for interviewing, this method can really change your perspective on applying for work and sitting down to speak to employers and recruiters about jobs. STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action and Result. Check out the link below, or search online to find a little more information about how this technique can change your approach to interviewing and aid you in your next job search.
Check this article out on Medium to get the whole experience.