Part of: 2014 digital library.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 301-319) and index.

1. Transformation of the U.S. jobs market -- 2. Why the jobs of tomorrow won't be like those of today -- 3. The skills you will need for tomorrow's high-skill careers -- 4. Twenty steps to your dream career -- 5. Discovering your passions, your skills, and yourself: steps 1 and 2 -- 6. Crafting your career goals and your professional brand: steps 3 through 10 -- 7. The college conundrum: steps 10 through 12 -- 8. The college equation: steps 10 through 14 -- 9. Alternative ways of getting an advanced education: steps 10 through 14 -- 10. Your first job as launchpad for a lifelong career: steps 15 through 20 -- 11. You can have it all, but you will have to work for it -- About the author -- Notes -- References -- Index.

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What do you want your life to be like when you're 25? 35? 55? Do you want a job that will feed you and your family or do you want a career that will be an integral part of your life--a career that will feed your passions, enable the lifestyle you choose, and be a continual source of engagement and pride? But do you really have the luxury of even considering your dream job in an era in which more than 40 percent of college graduates can't even get jobs that require college degrees, much less jobs in their field? Or can you even afford to go to college at all? Not only should you think about your dream job--you owe it to yourself to do so. First, if done properly, the very process of deciding upon and preparing for your dream job can dramatically improve your employability, expand your employment options, and increase the value you can provide your employer or your clients. Better yet, you can apply this same process through your entire career, as your interests and life goals continually evolve. Preparing for your dream job, however, requires much more than dreaming about the type of job that will make you happy. It also requires an objective evaluation of your strengths and limitations, a careful evaluation of the type of post-high school education that is best suited to you, and your specific career objectives and proactive management of your education to ensure that you develop the skills and personality traits you will need not just for your first job, but for your future careers and your life. And speaking of jobs, it requires a full understanding of the employment prospects and requirements for jobs in your field and intense focus on developing the skills that will be required to give you an advantage in getting that job. It also needs a contingency plan, including selection of and preparation for a safety career. A lot of work? Sure it is. And if all you want is a job--any job--you don't have to worry about it. But if you want a career (or multiple careers) that will engage your passions and put you in control of your life, you need a plan. And you need one now.

Title from PDF title page (viewed on September 26, 2014).

Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest, 2015. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest affiliated libraries.