K. P.
Career counseling involves properly understanding your client’s needs and then guiding them towards achievable goals (Niles & Harris-Bowlsbey, 2017). It is important that counseling professionals are compassionate individuals with a desire to help others in order to foster an authentic and safe relationship (McFadden & Curry, 2018). I have always loved helping others, ever since I was younger. I was taught from an early age to always try and help people and treat everyone you come in contact with, with respect and kindness. One of the strengths that I can use as a career counselor would be my compassionate, positive attitude. I try to find the joy and good in every situation, even if it appears there is none. Compassion is important in any counseling environment because it creates an open safe place for the client to be vulnerable and feel free of judgment. I also love to encourage and motivate others. I find joy in helping to change someone’s mood from sad to excited or happy. My friends and family often come to me to vent about tough issues they are dealing with. In these situations, I try to remind of good things they have in their life and remind them that I care about them. This skill could also be used in a career-counseling environment. For example, if a client is feeling discouraged about not achieving their goal, I could remind them that they have already succeeded by just trying and that important changes take time. I would have trouble listening to the client explain their situation and issues without sharing my opinion immediately. I have a tendency to want to jump into the conversation if I think of something to add value to the discussion, instead of waiting until they are done talking and then sharing my thoughts. This came come across as interrupting or rude to some people and I would need to practice holding off on sharing my opinion for a more appropriate time.
Niles, S. G. & Harris-Bowlsbey, J. (2017). Career development interventions (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson
McFadden, A.; Curry, J. State Leaders‘ and School Counselors’ roles in Elementary and Middle School Career Development: Research Findings and Promoting Practices. Techniques: Connecting Education & Careers.Mar2018, Vol. 93 Issue 3, p46-49.
———————————————————————————————-
CLASSMATE #-2
Christopher B.
My strengths in Career Counseling?
According to our text offering support to clients is essential to effective career counseling (Nile & Harris-Bowlsbey, 2017). Providing support for clients helps them manage feelings of being overwhelmed, and being pulled in every direction. These are the kinds of feelings and emotions clients experience when facing career changes, or trying to solidify career goals. I feel as a counselor one of my strongest attributes are being able to identify when my client is dealing with feelings of helplessness, and confusion, and help them to process and manage the thoughts and ideas they are facing.
I feel that this is probably one of my greatest strengths as a counselor because of experience. When the counselor has been in similar situations that the client is facing, it can teach the counselor how to empathize, or relate to the overwhelming feeling the client is experiencing. Some call this the school of hard knocks. I believe from this experience I have developed an ability to understand the importance of informational, assessment, and emotional support.
What areas do i struggle with most in career counseling?
Reviewing and helping clients with resumes can be a struggle for me in career counseling. I understand that resumes are an important part of the career development and job search process. According to (Pyle, 2007) employers look for resumes that show connections in skills required for being successful in a position. To prepare a client to be a top candidate for a position the counselor must help the client compose a resume that clearly connects with the responsibilities related to the job in which they are applying. This is an area where I know that I need improvement to better prepare my clients for success. For anyone looking to start a position or maybe advance in a current career they must consistently work to improve their resume writing skills. Resume writing has always been a weak area for me, so it is necessary for me to improve in that area to be a good counselor.
Niles, S. G. & Harris-Bowlsbey, J. (2017). Career development interventions (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson