Beverley East, Contributor
Hi Beverley,
I read your column as often as I can and I need your advice on a situation.
I am 36 years old and pursuing a career in the travel industry. I am at present doing a one-year diploma course in this industry which covers car rental, baggage, routing, tours and a lot more areas in the industry so I don't especially have to be a travel agent. I am also doing Spanish classes.
I suffered a minor stroke over 10 years ago and I have limited mobility of my right hand. However, I am left-handed and I walk with a slight limp. I have never considered myself disabled, I can drive and have my driver's licence which I acquired after my stroke.
I love the travel industry a lot and have experience in working in a travel agency in 1988. What do you think are my chances of being employed? I know the job market is tight and competitive, but I am strong and I know I can do anything I aspire to do. I just want to be part of a team and to be able to start working again. I have had to overcome a lot and have a lot more to overcome. What do you think?
I await your reply.
Dear Reader,
Pat yourself on the back for getting this far. Getting a stroke so young you have achieved much getting on with your life and getting your
driver's licence. What you must do now is get rid of any self-doubt and
continue to keep positive thoughts about what you want to acquire. Keep your eyes on the prize.
It is important to know the stories of other persons who faced challenges and triumphed. Wilma Rudolph had polio, President Roosevelt ran the United States from a wheelchair, and then there was Harriett Tubman who suffered epilepsy but ran the underground railway movement. All these stories should motivate you to greatness.
You must continue to move forward. You are young and as long as you have the desire to work and the power of positive thinking you can go far. Of course, there will be days when you are tired and you get
frustrated but you must move forward with your dream. If you don't, what are you options? Lie down and die! The market is tight, I agree, but you will find your niche in your own time.
My mother has been in a wheelchair for the past seven years. She is 79 this year. You dare not tell her she is disabled. She will tell you in a heartbeat that, "I am very able, I just cannot walk." She still runs her perfume campaign from her wheelchair, and where all sales representatives go to the client she has all the clients coming to her. Just strengthen your thought process and keep moving forward.
Step out into your greatness and follow your path. Taking one day at a time.
Dear Beverley,
I am a teenager, 15 years old, who is a reader of your column in The Sunday Gleaner. I attend a prominent high school and will be choosing my subjects to do at the CXC level in about two weeks. My problem is that I have no idea what I want to become in the future and I am afraid that my lack of proper planning and preparation will be disastrous.
I am an 'A' student and I have no clue what my future holds. I always read the career section to see what sort of jobs are mostly in demand. This gets me nowhere as most jobs require three to five years' experience in a familiar field.
I am fairly good at the computer, but I am not sure if information technology is a good choice. I figure that accounts will be a good choice, but I am not sure. Whatever I plan to do in the future, I want it to be business-related. I am quite aware that most persons my age are all aspiring to be greats without thinking or even glancing at the facts and realising the impossibilities ... just to be frank (not pessimistic). Please help and give a confused teenager some good advice.
Dear Reader,
I am impressed that at 15 years of age you are reading the career
column. I was not that mature at your age. You must continue to get good grades in all your subjects. Concentrate on English, IT, maths and some general subjects so that you can become well-rounded. Don't believe that anything you learn is wasted. All skills are transferable.
Don't worry about the three to four years' experience that you require for a job. How you overcome that is by building your community base and doing extra-curricular activities in school. For example, music, debate committees. You can also get involved in writing the school's newsletter, organising and running things. By doing this you begin to develop the skills that are required in the workplace.
You can also get involved in your community in the areas of homelessness, domestic violence and outreach programmes in your church. These will help to develop your experience and working skills. All these skills are transferable.
You should not be looking at the job page and picking your career from the pages of the newspaper. That is not how it works. You find something that you are passionate about. Whatever you get involved in over the next couple of months write down the things you love to do and the things that do not excite you so much. Over time you will find what that is.
You are only 15 so stop being so hard on yourself and don't worry about what job you want now. Concentrate on being well-rounded. Instead of reading the job pages subscribe or read trade magazines other than fashion magazines. Read novels from various authors and articles of unique interests. There are readers of this column in their 30s who are still finding their way and that is OK too. I was a late bloomer myself but all that I learnt on the way has helped me today.
Whatever you decide on now to be your career, you could still make changes over a 15-year period. Very few people make a career choice and stay in it their entire lives. Many start in one area and develop an interest in another.
Enjoy your summer vacation. Once you are out of school you can plan what you want to do differently in the next school year. Studying and getting the best grades is paramount. Learning a new language, taking on extra-curricular activities and some community work will build your character into a well-rounded individual. You can add all these experiences to your résumé when the time comes.
You can send your
career concerns to
writefully_yours@hotmail.com
