If you think your career is at a standstill, try these simple strategies. By Jim Bright.

In response to a number of reader queries, I have devised a "Career Check-up" to help you identify the nature of your career issues and what steps you can take to address them.

To make things simpler, I have divided career issues into the following three categories: career direction, job search and workplace issues.

The following is a step-by-step guide to complete the Career Check-up.

Career direction

Do I know what interests me? Do I know what I am good at or what I could be good at, given the chance? Do I know what opportunities are out there? Do I know what courses and training are required or possible?

If you need help with these questions, there are four general sources of help. Firstly, you could ask your colleagues, friends and family.

The pros are they know you and the advice is free. The cons are they may not have accurate information or the skills required to help someone seeking direction, they are not necessarily impartial and confidentiality may be an issue.

Secondly, you can use the plethora of websites, including mycareer.com.au, myfuture.edu.au, jobsearch.gov.au. The pros are they are free and the good ones (like those listed) contain extensive, accurate and up-to-date information and advice.

The cons are there is a lot of rubbish once you move away from the trusted sites, a lot of outdated information and dodgy "tests" that may mislead you.

Some people really want human contact. Thirdly, there are many great books available. On my shelves I keep What Color is Your Parachute by Dick Bolles, Brilliant Future by Chris Sangster and, of course, Job Hunting for Dummies by yours truly.

The pros are they are free from libraries or cheap. They often go into more detail than many websites do and they are portable.

The cons include the advice on offer may not be relevant for Australia or for you personally. Finally, you could seek professional advice. Career counselling or coaching is not threatening and there is good, objective evidence that it helps.

The pros include the opportunity to address your situation directly and the advice is professional, objective and confidential. The cons include expense, as fees vary from as little as $50 an hour to $500 an hour or more.

Look for membership of the Australian Psychological Society (1800 333 497) or the Career Development Association of Australia (1800 222 390) as a minimum, plus postgraduate qualifications in careers.

Job hunt

Am I getting shortlisted for an interview? If not, there could be several reasons: a) the resume needs work; b) you are applying for the wrong roles; or c) you are doing nothing particularly wrong but the market is tight.

To remedy a) or b), you have the same choices as for career direction: informal advice, websites, books (an Australian one) or professional help. Am I being interviewed but not getting the role? Your interview performance and-or presentation needs help or, in some cases, there may be political or discrimination issues to overcome.

I would recommend you practise, check out websites for ideas but preferably get professional feedback.

Workplace issues

Am I suffering bullying or discrimination in the workplace? Am I struggling with my motivation? Am I having difficulties in my team or with a difficult personality?

Am I feeling stressed and easily distracted? Am I feeling unfocused and disengaged? Am I worried about negotiating my pay and conditions?

For all of the above, my recommendation is to first recognise the signs before it is too late or before you do something that makes things worse.

Secondly, consider whether your issue has a remedy in law, in which case consider approaching your union or a solicitor (the Law Society can assist in finding the right person, lawsociety.com.au).

There are quite a few books covering some of these topics and some websites may have coverage, too.

Here, professional help is highly recommended for serious issues.



Jim Bright is professor of career education and development at ACU National and a partner at Bright and Associates, a career management consultancy.

brightside@jimbright.com. For more workplace advice, visit mycareer.com.au/advice.