“What Color is Your Parachute?”: Changing Your Perspective on Career Planning

Often when job hunting, people focus on how much a job may pay and what benefits it offers to the job seeker, causing plenty of job seekers to accept a role that is ultimately not to their best interests. Considering the current state of the economy, it’s understandable why such factors are prioritized above others, however it can be a major mistake to only look at these elements of a role. Ideally, we want to find careers that blend our interests with our skills, and will ultimately satisfy us.

When considering a career path, it’s a good idea to step back and take on a holistic viewpoint about your life, your interests, and what you seek for the future. Richard N. Bolles breaks down the challenge of job hunting and career planning in his text “What Color is Your Parachute”, highlighting seven questions that job hunters should ask themselves, thinking about who they are as professionals and what is important:

1.) What are your favorite knowledges or fields of interest?

Ideally, we want to work in a career that makes use of what we know and like to study or engage in. This question allows you to list potential areas of interest to help widen your gaze regarding potential fields to work in. Identifying subjects that you are interested in (even without experience) can allow you to reassess potential career direction.

2.) What kind of people do you like to work with?

With the exception of a few careers, most job seekers will find they will have to interact with other people either as coworkers or as clients. This question challenges job seekers to list traits they prefer in their coworkers and helps job seekers identify potential people they can’t easily work with.

3.) What are my transferable skills that I love to do?

When we say transferable skills in this question, we’re looking at skills that could potentially benefit in a future career. That being said, these kinds of skills can be related to any sort of interest or hobby. Are you a gardener who tends to a large collection of plants? Your skills could be biological, spacial, time management, etc.

4.) What are my favorite working conditions?

What kind of environment will you be faced with after you accept a position? Will you feel comfortable with the working conditions and stay in a position for the long term? By identifying what conditions you prefer and would enjoy most, you are able to set standards for yourself when job hunting and avoid positions that would cause undue stress and frustration.

5.) What is the highest level of responsibility I feel most comfortable with?

Are you a person who would gladly be a manager or leader in an organization, or do you prefer to take direction from others? Do you feel comfortable handling money or locking up a store? Identifying what responsibilities you are willing to accept allows you to avoid roles that would ask more than you would want as well as clarify to what extent you’d want to advance in an industry.

6.) What are my preferred places to live in (consider the future)?

Are you someone who enjoys working in a city or small town environment? Would you rather live near the ocean or in the mountains? Are you someone who prefers locations with a robust public transportation system, or do you like driving longer distances? Listing places you’d like to live brings gives you ideas of where to look for potential work and plan for the future.

7.) What is my goal, purpose or mission in life?

When pursuing a career, ideally it is in your best interest to find a position that aligns with your own goals or values so that there is little conflict with what you do and what you believe. Identifying your goals and mission in life allows you to ensure that you are compatible with the company’s stated vision and values.

By considering these questions in your job hunting and career planning, you open up your options and avenues that may have previously gone unnoticed. For more information about this approach and other job-hunting tips, check out Richard Bolle’s text, “What Color is Your Parachute”.