By Sunil Mahajan –
The biggest challenge for today’s youth is finding their purpose in life and when they are at the cross roads of it they have no one to guide them to make a well informed and satisfied decision.
More often than not, people find themselves in a state of dilemma before making important decisions in their lives.
Generally, everyone seeks advice from parents and friends before deciding on something mundane as what to wear. Being rational individuals, people always want to get what’s best for them. Shouldn’t the same logic be applied while choosing a career, or changing career paths, which is supposedly a big decision one makes in one’s life?
For people who find it difficult to choose the right career, a career guide helps them sort this confusion. A number of career guidance portals have mushroomed online and offer assistance, but how authentic or qualified are they in assessing the abilities, capabilities of the candidate? Do they point to the right direction to the seeker or leave them more confused than before.
In our church we have a vacuum that needs to be filled with trained counsellors to help guide our youth in decisions to vocations or career guidance. So, who will help our children to make this choice for their life?
Let’s first understand what it means first before we say yes to the question asked.
Career guidance is the guidance given to individuals to help them acquire the knowledge, information, skills, and experience necessary to identify career options, and narrow them down to make one career decision. This career decision then results in their social, financial and emotional well-being throughout.
I remember the time I had this conversation with my eldest son and he was in 8th grade. He told me that he would like to pursue astrophysics as a career and I was a little taken aback by his response and then I pulled myself together and asked him questions to clarify so that I could understand better. It has been a 4 years since that conversation and he has not moved from that decision. All the way long, we as parents supported him with relevant information on the career path he choose and we continue to support him.
But, our vocation is not the same as our career or profession. However, there is an overlap between a vocation and a profession. The career could lead to a vocation in some cases.
A career or a profession is something that you have in order to support yourself and to contribute in some way to the good of the society. You don’t need to believe in God to choose a career or a profession. A person can pick, choose and switch profession freely depending on his/her preferences, strengths or circumstances. A profession or a career always has a horizontal dimension.
When we talk about vocation, we introduce a vertical dimension in our life, which is God. It is no longer ‘what do I prefer?’ but rather ‘What does God want me to be?” A vocation is not something that you can switch like a profession or a career. A vocation is a call to something higher, and is very personal to each one called.
The lifestyle and demands of each particular vocation is very different but there are some similarities between them. Each vocation is a commitment to love in a certain way. The object of every vocation is God.
As St. Pope John Paul II wrote, “Love makes us seek what is good; love makes us better persons. It is love that prompts men and women to marry and form a family, to have children. It is love that prompts others to embrace the consecrated life or become priests.”
Finally, it is important not to compare the value of different vocations but to appreciate the value of each one and to discover which one is right for you. The same is applicable to make the right career move. Because both these decisions impact our lives directly.
Hence, to make a right choice of career or vocation requires proper discernment of the self, abilities, goals and objectives of the individual. A well informed decision can be taken only after examining all these aspects thoroughly, to find satisfaction in the ultimate choice and being at peace with the decision.
Sunil Mahajan is the founder and director of Pathfinder, a catholic ministry that is involved in working with various institutions in South India. Pathfinder acts as a catalyst to bring about transformation in families, teachers and students. He can be reached at: [email protected]