How Well Can One Know A future Profession In Advance?

Recently did a couple of Blogs about job attraction. One was “what Draws you to a Job” and the other, "Architects & Hey Dad".

In these two blogs I took separately, first the negative and then the positive aspect of choosing your future profession based solely from what you see depicted of it on TV.

However my emphasis in both posts was that even when positive, one should always check a career move out with much more care than simply taking what you see on TV as ‘real reality’. Still wise advice I believe. Anyway, I received the following comment from my oldest, but not older, sister in regard to my comments on, "Architects & Hey Dad".

“You do have a point but I beg to differ about how well you may check some occupations out, it really comes down to what it is like in the real world. What you see some times is not what it is really all about. Some times it can come down to who you work with and where. Saying that one occupation is always a particular way is unrealistic a lot depends on depends on how you think as in the way you do things. Some personalities are more suitable for a particular job but you may not be that type of person and be brilliant in that profession. Interestingly some positions do the theory long before the practical and you can be great in one part and not the other, so how do you choose?? Also I have come to believe that no time spent studying or working in a field that "is not for you' is ever really wasted. Something new is always learnt even it is only learning to be involved with others in your field, and that it is not want you want to do or be. It can make things clearer in what you might really want to do. Its really on how you look at it! Half full or half empty.”
She makes some very good points here and two major ones in particular and so I will respond to the first now and address the second in another blog.

The first question to be addressed in this discussion in my humble opinion is not what is the best Profession to be in or even what profession are you best suited for, but in fact the real question is what is the best Profession for you?

As my sister rightly says, “What you see some times is not what it is really all about. Some times it can come down to who you work with and where. Saying that one occupation is always a particular way is unrealistic a lot depends on depends on how you think as in the way you do things. Some personalities are more suitable for a particular job but you may not be that type of person and be brilliant in that profession.”

Some times it is indeed the people you work with that can make your job “heaven or hell” so to speak, but that said, it is also common knowledge that certain jobs attract certain types of people and if you know that your personality cannot cope with that type of person then you should seriously not consider that career. Again if you are set in your ways on how things are to be done, then jobs that require a lot of regimentation are not for you.

Yes I know that there will always be some “Blankety Blank” people wherever you go, but that is sadly a fact of life that we all have to live with and if you struggle with that then you have to look for career opportunities where that type of personality, is not dominant.

Also, although some jobs encourage one type of personality, that doesn’t mean everyone is like that and it is possible for you to sometimes choose an employer where not everyone is like that. Which is why I harp back on my original point of doing your research a bit more carefully at the start, if you have that option.

I close with the reminder that while my blogs are meant to be simple and usually only address one side of a discussion, I do acknowledge that nothing in life is ever really simple, and that there are many variables and alternatives. However in my blogs, I try to present simple views, with the hope/wish that they will encourage you the reader to a further and a more fuller study on the subject. As such I also appreciate your input and views too and like with my sister’s comments, these often inspire other blogs, so thanks for your input. Whether it be past or future. Walter.