Stages in career Development
A career is defined as a sequence of positions occupied by a person during the course of a lifetime.
The popular way of analyzing the career is to look at them as made up of stages. There are five stage models that is applicable to the most people during their work life. Career stages model is the most popular way to view careers.
· Exploration is when individuals are exploring possible career options and making critical choices.
· Establishment begins with the search for work and getting that first job.
· Mid-career is when an individual is no longer seen as a "learner."
· Late career is when an individual can share his or her knowledge with others in the organization.
· Decline is when an individual leaves the work force.
Career stages:
Stage 1: Exploration
This stage includes a person’s earliest recollection of “what I want to be when I grow up” and the revisions on that dream as the person commits to his or her career work. This stage is usually heavily affected by spoken and unspoken messages that people receive from family or significant others regarding what their life path or journey should be. The messages are usually from a person’s elders about their desire for the type of work the person should do, where he or she should live, and spiritual dimensions and lifestyle such as choice of a partner, number of children, and so forth.
Many to the critical choices individual make about their carrier are made prior to every entering the work on a paid basis our parents relatives, teachers as well as what we see on television and films very early in our parents their interests, their aspirations and their financial resources will be heavy factors in determining out planets, their interests, their aspirations and their financial resources will be heavy factors in determine out perception of what carriers are available.
The exploration period ends for most in our mid-twenties as we get employed. From an organisation stand point. This stage has less relevance, since it occurs prior to employment. It is of course not irrelevant. The exploration period is when a number of expectations abt ones career are developed, many of which are unrealistic.
Stage 2: Establishment
The establishment period begins with the search for work and includes getting your first job being accepted by your peers, learning the job and gaining the first tangible evidence of success of or failure in the 'real world'.
It is a time that brings the uncertainties and anxieties. Additionally it also marked by the making of mistakes, learning from these mistakes and gradual assumption of increased responsibilities. However individuals in this stage have yet to reach their peak productivity and rarely are they given work assignment that carry great power or high stages.
At this stage, people bring with them a list of potential life and work options. The activities of this stage help people assess and understand their competency strengths; personality traits; abilities; interests; learning-style, work-style, and work-environment preferences; and personal, interpersonal, work, and cultural values. At this stage, people usually receive detailed information from having completed formal or informal appraisal instruments, checklists, simulations, interviews, and so forth. The output contains highly specific information about a person, including the effect of his or her value systems on personal preferences. People can use that appraisal information to revise the options they developed in the exploration stage.
Stage 3: Mid-Career
Most people do not face their first career dilemmas until they reach the mid-carrier stage this is a time where individual may continue their prior improvements in performance level off or begin to deteriorate. At this stage the first dilemma is accepting that on is no longer seen as a learner. Mistakes carry greater penalty. At this point in a career one is expected to have moved beyond apprenticeship to journeyman status. To those who make the successful transition go greater responsibilities and rewards. For others it may be a time of reassessment, job changes, adjustment of priorities or the pursuit of alternative life styles.
This is a delicate stage of career work because the outputs must be grounded in reality to the greatest degree possible. If they aren’t realistic, people are likely to experience frustration or disappointment later on. That could cause them to be discouraged, which could lead to abandoning any further effort. Thus, the decision-making process should result in a set of realistic career work goals, given the information available at the time.
Stage 4: Late Career
For those who continue to grow through the mid-carrier stage the late carrier usually is a pleasant time when one is allowed the luxury to relax a bit and enjoy playing the part of the elder state man. It is a time their one rest on one's laurels and both in the respect given by younger employees. During the late career days, individuals are no longer learning nor is it expected that they should out do their levels of performance from previous years. Their value to the organisation lies heavily in their judgment, built up over so many years and through varied experiences and sharing with and teaching others based on the knowledge they have gained.
For those who have stagnated or deteriorated during the previous stage the late career brings the reality that they will not have an everlasting impact or change the world as they had once thought. It is a time when individuals recognize that they have decreased work mobility and may be locked to their current job. One begins to look forward to retirement and the opportunities of doing something different life off the job is likely lot carry for greater importance then it did in earlier days.
Stage 5: Decline
The final stage in one's carrier is difficult for everyone but ironically is probably hardest on those who had continued successes in earlier stages. After several decades of continued achievements and high level of performance, time for retirement has reached. These individuals are forced to step out of the limelight and give up major component of their identity. For the most performers or those who have seen their performance deteriorate over the years. It may be pleasant time. The frustrations that have been associated with work will be left behind.
Adjustments of course will have to be made regardless of whether one is leaving a sparkling career or a dismal career. The regimentation that work provides will no longer be there. Responsibilities will be fewer in life and will be less structured. As a result it is a difficult stage for anyone to confront.
