Australia Votes!

Wasim El-Haj

So we find ourselves at the polling booth once again…who will be our elected Prime Minister tonight? How will this impact on career education?

This week is National Careers Week – did you know that? No? Most people don’t. One of the aims of this week is to raise awareness and recognition of careers and career development practitioners. Many of us go into jobs, and they may lead to careers…or not. What is a ‘career’ and how on earth do you choose ONE?!

It is all too familiar, the fear of uncertainty. I see clients aged 12 to 70. No one is sure what the future holds. That’s just the beauty of it…It is a constant reminder of Jim Bright and Robert Prior’s Chaos Theory of Careers. Why does a 14 year old need his or her life mapped out? Why does a 70 year old come to me seeking career advice?

I’ve come to the conclusion that it is fantastic to have a goal, an idea about a possible career, but keep open to react to change.

• Jobs change – automation, new fields, replaced by better services.
• We change – our health changes, our commitments change (kids, partners), our interests change and sometimes our location changes (migrants or refugees).
• The World of Work changes – we have seen a shift over the past hundred years with women entering the workforce, then with women entering all fields of the workforce (think engineering and car mechanics – fields still needing strong encouragement). Then there’s the change in culture of work – multiple jobs is acceptable or even expected at a younger age, continuing with further study or training and changing professions is seen as growth.
• Expenses have gone up – living in Sydney, I’m all too familiar with how expensive it is to just survive. I was checking out a recessed granny flat earlier today, before casting my vote, as I need a home, but even with two jobs, that isn’t easy to manage. So people are often seeking better opportunities, and we are free to do so.

In February this year, the Federal Minister of Education launch the National Career Education Strategy. This does a few things:

1. It raises the profile of the career practitioner in Australia – a neglected profession.
2. It makes recommendations and sets standards for what should be done in schools by career development practitioners. Many of us already do much of what is listed, but many do not. Setting a bar to aspire towards for the school, parents and local businesses – as a community – is profoundly important.
3. It allows a solid reference platform from which to spring forth with change in our respective workplaces.

The full strategy can be downloaded here.

Today Australia votes . The campaign trail has been bombarded with promises for tax cuts, business growth, penalty rates…and so on. Whether we are cognisant of it or not, careers permeate our lives. They impact our decisions on where we live, how much we can sleep, how healthy we feel, how happy we are and who we might vote for today.

Be aware. Be informed. A former teacher of mine gave me great advice as a student: “Make a decision you won’t regret.” That decision is different for every one of us, and we own it.