Every time I come across any fresh graduate who has turned up for a career counselling session, the initial moments of our discussion are centred around the topic of a career goal. I have to admit that barring a few, not many are comfortable to speak about it openly. They are either too confused about it or they do not have a career goal yet, which is a worrying factor.

The significance of a career goal on the part of a fresh graduate is that it will give them direction in their life to go about in a professional setting. Moreover, it will convey to the prospective employers that the particular candidate is very focused in their life plan and it is worth investing in them. The candidate needs to look deep within themselves and come out with affirmative answers to the questions that would probably linger on their minds pertaining to where they would like to work, in what capacity and so on. This is very important.

The youth will be well-served if they take note of the following points related to the importance and significance of having a career goal in their life:

A career goal can be a short-term goal, between three to five years or a long-term goal, beyond five years. 

Setting up of a career goal will actually mean that you will have to mend your life around it so that you stay focused to achieve them in terms of equipping yourself with the requisite skills and experience based on your educational accomplishments.

You will be successful in your career scenario, when your career goals are able to be accommodated within the framework of the company’s growth line or to put it in other words, when you are able to align your personal career goal with that of your organisation’s futuristic plans.

A clearly expressed career goal will increase your self-confidence and eventually will show in your self-esteem during the selection process, which will attract the attention of the recruiters. 

A career goal is certainly of critical importance to determine the quality of your life.