NO BOLT FROM THE BLUE

PASSION is an important factor when choosing a career but a bit of research is helpful, too.

While most people consider their interests before making a decision, just one in eight people say their choice is based on industry data, SEEK research reveals.

Its poll of 1400 people on Twitter shows 53 per cent choose their career path based on their passions, while 20 per cent follow the advice of a parent or teacher, 14 per cent align their career with the school subject in which they scored highest, and just 13 per cent turn to job growth forecasts.

Good Education Group content manager Patrick Evans says there are many factors to research before settling on a career.

“Salary is an important aspect but not the only thing,” he says.

“(You should also research) the availability of jobs in that career, whether there is going to be growth or decline, the likelihood of securing a job (after study or training), the opportunities for growth (once you are in the industry), whether you need a qualification and the cost associated with university or training.

“You may also want to find out if there will be flexible working arrangements if that is important to you, whether you can salary sacrifice … there is a whole range of factors.”

Ultimately, though, Evans recommends people pursue a career they will find fulfilling.

“Salary is front of mind for everyone but just because a job pays well is not enough of a reason to choose it,” he says.

“Don’t choose something just because your friends or siblings have done it in the past. Like it or not you spend a large portion of your life at work so choose something you enjoy … that gives you purpose.

“Find a career you are passionate about.”

Evans says although many people make career changes throughout their working lives, they can avoid “chopping and changing for the sake of it” by putting thought into their choice in the very beginning.

Good Education Group’s The Good Universities Guide website offers information on more than 500 different occupations, including how competitive the job market is, whether training is required and the types of soft skills needed to succeed.

Partners accountant and chief executive Chris Hooper

(pictured) decided to learn accounting to succeed in business.

However, the “compulsive entrepreneur” soon discovered it opened more doors than he had considered.

“I went into public accounting to learn the ropes but then I discovered that working in a firm you get to play with hundreds of businesses so just as you’d see someone obsessed with cars become a mechanic, for me, accounting had become an outlet for my obsession with business,” Hooper says.

“I’ve been a compulsive entrepreneur since age 13 and I love business.

“In my teens I understood most aspects of business except for accounting, which was really the most confusing. I was told that it was the language of business so I decided that in order to succeed in business I needed to conquer my fear of accounting.”

Hooper says accounting is not just for “maths nerds”.

“Half of my time is spent on the phone or in meetings, so there’s a huge interpersonal element to the job,” he says.

“Ideally people that are both strong with numbers and strong with people do really well in the profession.”