Introduction
THINKING ABOUT YOUR FUTURE!
Every individual has unique personality characteristics which dictate their likes, dislikes and needs to some degree. You are an exceptional person with your very own characteristics, likes, dislikes and needs. The things that you like and enjoy doing may differ greatly from your friends’ or family’s enjoyable activities.
In school, many times students don’t know what they want to do the rest of their lives but they feel some pressure to make a decision. It’s sad but true, many times this decision is based on someone else’s ideas which results in a person feeling stuck in someone else’s dream a life that is not of their own creation. This situation can cause much unhappiness and even blame and resentment, especially if you are inclined to make others happy without giving attention to your own desires.
Task
Objectives:
- Identify your personal likes, dislikes and needs
- Learn what motivates you
- Identify potential careers that may be fulfilling to you based upon your likes, dislikes and needs
Process
Before making decisions about your continued education, future career, home, marriage, children, and so forth, examine yourself. Reflect on your passions desires and values. Answer some vital questions…
1. What do you like to do?
2. What do you not like to do?
3. What makes you feel good about yourself?
4. What makes you feel bad?
5. What do you want to accomplish in your lifetime?
6. What makes you happy?
Evaluation
1. Partner Activity
Assignment: Instruct students to choose a partner for this assignment, or pair the students yourself. Assign students to rank the needs based on their perception of their partners needs in order of importance. They are not to discuss these needs with one another, but are to complete the assignment based on their own perceptions.
Activity: Lead students to discuss how their ranking of their own needs compare to the rankings of their needs based on their partners perceptions. Explain to students that even though from time to time, other people’s perceptions of us as individuals may be accurate, many times they are not. Therefore, in determining what is important to us as individuals and in choosing our own life course, we need to consider our needs as we realize them rather than relying upon the opinions of others in regard to what is best for us.
2. Career Research
Assignment: Instruct students to complete research regarding one or more of the careers that they identified. and to prepare a research outline and/or presentation on the topic.
Activity: Have students make oral presentations regarding the findings from their research.
Conclusion
Taking the time now to discover your passions and to create a vision for your life will help you to avoid much heartache, feelings of failure and misery in the future.
Credits
Teacher Page
What is most important for you as an individual is to discover what your needs are and which are most important and most motivating. Armed with this information, you are more likely to make good decisions for your future including family considerations, education and careers.
When you discover what your true passions are it is easier to be sure of what you want for your future. You will be happier doing something you love than, for example, if you have a strong need for social contact you will likely be unhappy in a career in which you have limited contact with people. If you have a high need for order and predictability a career that involves extensive shift-work or traveling, or one based on commissions may not be for you. If power is your driving force, you may be well-suited for management or leadership positions, perhaps even politics.