Presenting a festive flavored extract from my upcoming book “The 10 Day Career Vision”

Day 1: Life Stages
On the first day of career change, you’re the nominee:

  • What’s your current career satisfaction level?
  • What is your current stage of career development?
  • What person or persons have been influential in your career choices?
  • What aspects of your family, culture, and past experiences have affected your career choices?
  • When you look back through the years, do you notice any patterns to your career choices?

Day 2: What’s Your Decision-Making Style?
On the second day of career change, tell me candidly:

  • What is your primary decision-making style?
  • How has this affected your career choices?

Day 3: Identify Barriers and Core Concerns
On the third day of career change, you will soon foresee:

  • What aspects of career transition are troubling/concerning for you?
  • What are your negative thoughts that will inhibit a successful career transition?

Day 4: Guided Career Imagery
On the fourth day of career change, imagine what could be:

  • What is your ideal career?
  • How is your ideal day structured?
  • What tasks do you perform?
    What is your ideal lifestyle, and what is needed to achieve/maintain it?
  • When thinking about your ideal work and lifestyle, what themes emerge?
  • What is realistic in your current situation?

Day 5: Professional Chronology
On the fifth day of career change, you’ve got the master key:

  • Do I have a list of all the roles (paid and unpaid) I’ve had throughout my career?
  • What were my most significant accomplishments in each of those roles?
  • Which accomplishments am I most proud of?
  • What skills are associated with each of my accomplishments?

Day 6: Identifying your Interests and Skills
On the sixth day of career change, entrust and clarify:

  • What are my unique interests and passions?
  • What are my best skills?
  • What is my Strong Interest Inventory® (SII®) Code?

Day 7: Identifying your Values
On the seventh day of career change, yourself, you will agree:

  • What are my most important intrinsic, extrinsic, and lifestyle values?
  • What is my one core quality/facet which best defines me?
  • How important is education/professional development to me and my future career?
  • Which values am I willing to compromise, if needed? How did I come to that decision?

Day 8: Personality
On the eighth day of career change, recognize instantly:

  • What are the 4 dichotomies of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI)?
  • What are your MBTI® preferences?
  • Based on the MBTI®, what are your strengths and areas for development?
  • How has the MBTI® helped in clarifying your career path?

Day 9: Research
On the ninth day of career change, there’s light between the trees:

  • Generate a list of organizations to target your job search
  • Note commonalities in organizational culture
  • Determine your target audience

Day 10: Vision Statement
On the tenth day of career change, you’ve got it, finally!

  • Articulate your core ideology
  • Provide a vivid description of your envisioned future
  • Write your mission and vision statements