At times your personal development plan may seem to stall out. You might be on a career fast track only to find yourself derailed after being laid off or replaced. If jobs in your profession are tight, you may need to give some thought to switching careers or taking a temporary job in another field.
When that happens, it's a good idea to take inventory of your abilities by preparing a personal skills checklist. This will help you determine what you might be good at as well as which jobs to avoid. Here is a template for reviewing your strengths and weaknesses. In some ways it will resemble a resume, but the checklist also provides categories for filling in more detail.
1. Education. List your degrees, certifications, licenses, and CEU's as well as other indicators of educational achievement. This may include formal academic study at public or private institutions as well as informal classes, training, seminars, and workshops that may or may not have led to a certificate. Take complete stock of all learning you have undertaken. Then look for patterns or linkages where you may have developed expertise, whether or not these areas are related to your current job. For example, you may be working in restaurant management but have taken several classes or seminars in human resource development. Perhaps that will become a new career option for you, especially in an entry-level position.
2. Experience. Jot down your work history in abbreviated fashion, but list main duties as well as those you especially found fulfilling or where you occasionally substituted for others. Even if most of your jobs were centered in the construction business, don't leave out winter work that included interior house painting. Then, if you decide you enjoy inside work more than outside jobs, you may decide to switch jobs to more of the former, especially when construction jobs in your area begin to decrease.
3. Volunteer work, hobbies, or interests. Organize the leisure-time activities where you have cultivated a particular skill. For example, if you were a Girl Scout leader, you may be drawn toward work that involves creativity or leadership. Or if you looked forward to volunteer days at the hospital or a nursing home, it may be that you have a nurturing side that would do well in a people-helping occupation. Or if you are the type of person that has helped kids in the neighborhood when parents were busy by teaching carving or cooking skills, you may be interested in becoming a teacher or a teacher's aide.
4. Technical skills and machinery operation. Now list all the equipment that you know how to operate correctly, especially, if you received skilled or professional training to do so. This may include woodworking tools, computer programs, or ham radio building technology. It's amazing how much expertise can build up over the years when we finally start tracking it. Indicate the models of equipment or tools you can operate as well as how long you have been doing these tasks.
5. Goals or dreams. Finally, write down all the things you would like to do, from acting to writing or making speeches. Then try to list a few possible jobs beside each:
-Write--copywriting, journalism, editing.
-Acting--community theater, high school play.
-Speeches--civic groups, politics.
Then put an asterisk beside those you would most enjoy pursuing. You can probably find classes or workshops that can provide training to further your expertise in these areas.
Get in touch with your inner strengths, experiences, and interests as you plan personal goals. Then, when opportunity knocks, you can open the door to your future with confidence.
