Where Do You See Yourself in 10 Years?

By: Zach

If there is one saying that I have never seemed to escape during my time here at UMD it is “wow, time goes by fast!” Even though we are all hunkering down for finals with winter break on the brink, spring semester is on the horizon, and there is still so much to be thinking about!

When we come back in January, there will be quite a bit on our plates, and it is important to take time over break to reflect on our accomplishments and set career goals for the future. This could be as simple as taking five minutes out of your day to jot down some long-term and short-term career goals. Let’s get real, we are all in higher education to better ourselves and make ourselves more valuable to employers. When we start thinking about the future, understand our skills and interests, and set goals, we are more likely to achieve them!

Here are some simple questions to ask yourself when setting career goals:

Set long-term career goals (5+ years) by asking yourself questions like…

• What do I enjoy doing?
• What am I good at?
• What aspects about a job do I like the most (eg. managing, communicating, data analysis, problem solving etc.)

With long-term goals come short-term career goals (1-5 years) as well. Some questions to ask yourself…

• What skills do I need to obtain in order to reach my long-term goals?
• What knowledge do I need? (eg. college courses, internships, applied practices, etc.)
• How should I start to focus my education in order to best prepare myself for my aspired career?

Once these two types of goals come into focus, it is much easier to be realistic about what can be accomplished now in order to get to you closer to the career you dream about! I know all this talk about the future seems a bit “out there,” but remember… “wow, time goes by fast,” and before you know it, graduation day will be here!

All in all, I am keeping you informed about some simple tasks because this is really what it comes down to when we look towards our future. Remember that graduation day will come sooner then you think, and by taking the time to answer these simple questions during your education, I promise it will launch you into your exciting career!

Remember to stop into Career & Internship Services (SCC 22) to take advantage of our career planning resources such as the career assessments:

• Strong Interest Inventory
• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
• StrengthsQuest

Read Zach’s other posts