Career Geek

Dear Graduate Counseling Student,

Thank you so much for coming in to see our career center. I really enjoyed meeting you, and your passion for the counseling profession shines bright. I am so thankful that Career Counseling is a class that you can take to receive your degree. I am pretty sure I made my position clear on how much I believe in the importance of career counseling in the over all well being of just about any individual. In fact, I probably overwhelmed you with my passionate thoughts on the subject.

I know I did. I saw the worried look in your eyes. Don’t worry, I’m harmless.

But you got me. You heard what I was preaching. And by the end of our brief time together, you were preaching it too. Often times, a person’s self worth is closely tied to their success, or lack thereof, in their occupation. I have worked with the full spectrum of ages in my career counseling, from elementary age students to senior citizens. Here is what I have observed:

• If a child has a passion for a subject, and is encouraged to dive in to that subject, they are more invested and engaged in their academics overall. This leads to so many options and career success.
• If a child is discouraged from a passion or interest, they may flounder academically and take much longer to find their path to personal success. But a good career counselor can help them find their strengths and talents.
• Some young college students have a hard time changing their academic mindset when they come to college. They need to make a shift from, “What do I need to turn in to get a good grade?” to taking charge of their academic route that will provide them a pathway to career success.
• Many college students struggle to make this change. But a good career counselor can help them discover their talents, interests, and purpose.
• If a middle age person who has been working at the same manufacturing plant for most of their adult life, suddenly loses their job when the plant closes, they will suffer stress in almost all parts of their life.
• It’s heartbreaking to watch.
• They have lost a very large part of their identity, and may need assistance to get back to a healthy frame of mind.
• This transition is a huge undertaking, but if they have a caring career counselor, along with many other supportive people in their network, the transition can happen.

So, my dear graduate counseling student, if I initially overwhelmed you with my enthusiasm and passionate discourse of the need for career counseling education for all graduate counseling students, I can’t apologize. It’s a pretty big deal for me. But thank you for listening. And taking it in. And becoming another believer. Here endeth the lesson.