Hey,
You’ve just graduated and you’re wondering, so now what? Trust me, I’ve been there and I know that feeling. It happens especially when you studied a non-professional course like History, Sociology, Political Science, Theatre Arts, Philosophy. You know, those courses that leave you wondering what exactly you’re going to do with the knowledge you’ve gotten.
I’ve had graduates walk up to me a lot of times completely confused and clueless as to what to do next. Not sure what they want to do or what career path to tow, they just send out applications hoping to get any job. I understand how nebulous a place that can be, but applying for any and every job is one of the biggest mistakes you can make.

To get through that confused state will need some introspection: What are the things you love to do? What makes you happy? What won’t you mind doing for free? Makes you feel so bad you want to do something about it? What are your strengths, what won’t you be caught dead doing? Are you an indoor our outdoor person? These answers will help you know YOU better. A lot of graduates apply for jobs they aren’t suited for. If you’re not a morning person, you hate calculations, and will prefer jeans and t-shirt to a suit any day, what is your CV doing in a bank? If you end up getting the job you’ll be one frustrated person, trust me!

So the first place to start? Know thyself

After you have found answers to the questions I posed above, then look at industries that complement your person and your passion. You can’t add value to any organization if you don’t even know who you are and what you want to be in life, what you want, or where your strengths lie? It’s easy to excel when you are a square peg thrown smack into a square hole.
So now you know what your strengths are and the sectors you’ll like to work in. Good. Hold on, it’s not time to send your CV out, yet. The next thing to do is to research companies within those sectors. What do they do, who are their clients, what’s their history, what’s the size of their business, what is it like to work there, what are the opportunities for growth within the company? Get their annual reports if you can and study them. What are they doing right? What can they improve? How can you help them improve it?

It’s important to know these things, so when you send your CV, you send it with a solution in mind. Always think about work from the perspective of the employer: What you can give, how to drive their business forward, what their needs might be. It’s hard for any employer to turn down anyone with ideas on how to make their business run better, trust me.
Enjoy your day.
–
Naomi Lucas
Graduate Pro

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