English 101

You will synthesize and examine what you have learned throughout the course. You will analyze and discuss the self-knowledge you have developed in the career context, using critical thinking throughout the paper.

Please note that your paper will be uploaded into Turnitin, an anti-plagiarism software, upon submission. Keep in mind that you are expected to submit original writing for this paper; copying and pasting from your previous papers can be considered self-plagiarism and can result in a failing grade.

ANSWER

CED 250: Final Reflection Paper

Reflection

Through this course, I have examined my career goals in detail to understand what I want to achieve and succeed in my career development. I have learned that a step-by-step decision-making process in a career helps one make informed and sound career decisions. Understanding oneself in terms of values, skills, and interests plays a major role in career choice (Lent and Brown, 2020). I have been involved in different activities that allowed me to understand my career goals and personality.

Self-Exploration

The self-exploration series entails learning about my personalities, such as interests, values, and skills (Lau, Chung, and Wang, 2021). At the beginning of the course, I never had an idea about the career path I wanted to focus on. However, through the self-exploration series, I have understood more about myself. This has played a vital role in understanding my right career choice. NEO-PI Tests and PGI tests helped me learn about the qualities that I can use in my career. My personality test indicated a high score in Dutifulness, friendliness, and anxiety. However, I scored low in depression and intellect. I love making friends and talking to people since I prefer open communication. My PGI tests indicated that most of my results were average. The tests indicated conscientiousness at zero for the NEO-PI test, while the highest was neuroticism with 84. My personality and values are all linked to helping people. I strongly believe in things such as integrity and kindness, which make people feel comfortable and safe.

Leadership, problem-solving skills, and detail-oriented have greatly influenced my career development. Leadership helps bring out the best abilities from others and motivate them to work together and attain a shared goal. Leadership is one of the most important skills since it helps one remain relevant and successful. Portraying leadership skills entails being able to communicate well, work in a team, and be organized. Leadership skills are related to people skills necessary for a career that entails constant contact with people. Leadership skills allow one to be relatable, respectful, polite, and interesting, thus developing and maintaining a good relationship with others and a deep sense of professionalism.

Being able to solve a problem is a significant skill in my career. The problem-solving skills lead to a more confident, happier, and more independent individual. This means that I can easily tackle any challenges in my career from a fresh perspective. Additionally, problem-solving skills help one understand relationships and make improvements and changes to survive effectively and compete in a continual environment. For instance, the problem style questions demand learners to recognize and explain accurate legal principles and rely on their reasoning skills to apply facts to an issue.

Detail-oriented skills have been crucial in my career development since I can pay close attention to my projects. Detail-oriented is a trait and skill that means that one can notice minor details and pay close attention to tasks to give the best. Ideally, all lawyers need an eye for details. Therefore, precision and accuracy are required to be successful in this career. For instance, if one makes a mistake with a single word, this can change the entire meaning of the clause. I have focused on my detail-oriented skills to prevent bad impressions and experiences with clients.

Career Research

After the course, I felt I had gained much knowledge in choosing my career and succeed in my career path. I have gained interest in becoming an attorney or a paralegal and legal assistant. Being an attorney means having a practical application of legal knowledge and theories to solve certain individualized issues. Attorneys defend entities or individuals in various court proceedings and help their clients in any situation that involves the law (Bennett, 2018). The general reason behind the need for lawyers is that all individuals are equal and demand opportunities to receive legal justice. I believe with my personality and values that all lie around helping people. I have a noble calling to help people get their legal justice. Ideally, all individuals are entitled to access to a lawyer of their choice to protect and uphold their rights at all phases of the criminal proceedings. I learned that a lawyer’s duties include advising and assisting clients on the most appropriate legal actions and how they should protect their interests. I believe in integrity and kindness to make people safe and comfortable. These are in line with the lawyer’s duties since they focus on creating normative order in many ways rather than just passage of formal regulations and laws. Ideally, when the lawyers help individuals and entities make deals, whether a public offering, marriage, or acquisition, they participate in normative ordering among businesses and individuals.

The course has also grown my desire to become a paralegal and legal assistant, closely related to a lawyer. A paralegal and legal assistant are qualified by training, education, and working experience to deliver legal services. The legal assistants are essential in legal research, drafting and checking documents, preparing hearings, communicating with clients, and organizing meetings and trials. A paralegal requires a wide range of skills which range from organizational skills, communication and writing skills, interpersonal skills, detail-oriented skills, multi-tasking, and adaptability skills. Looking back at the skills and traits of a paralegal and legal assistant, I realize that all these are skills that I have dramatically focuses on growing. Therefore, I have a greater chance of taking the courses, learn and enhance my skills and interests, thus become more professional in my career path.

Communication and intellectual skills are highly rewarding in the career options and essential in career development. For instance, law firms search for individuals with a mix of legal competencies when selecting candidates. Intellectual skills are important since the lawyers or legal assistants need to know the current national and local developments, especially on matters that influence their law firm and their clients. Accuracy and attention to detail are pivotal to the career development of both career options. For instance, a single word can change the meaning of a contract or clause, thus creating a bad experience or impression to the client. Interpersonal skills and teamwork are also essential since one has to collaborate with other individuals and link with the clients, which means there is a need for a close working relationship. Ideally, in career duties, the clients have to trust their representatives, which means that one has to be persuasive, personable, and polite.

Influencing Factors

Career development is considered a process of choosing, advancing, and improving a long career path. This is a life-long process of decision-making and learning that brings one close to a skillset. Ideally, career development is the process of exploration, self-knowledge, and decision-making that shapes one career (Sharif, Ahmad, and Sarwar, 2019). Family as an external factor has influenced my career planning. My parents have been the most influential in my career choice. They push me to become a lawyer with enough persuasion that this is the right career path. Ideally, like any other child, parents serve a great influence in their children’s career path and development.  My parents have played a great role in helping me discover skills and innate talents and become aware of the training and career resources. In the future, age will greatly influence my career development due to work experience and increase knowledge in the world of work. For instance, decision-making skills increase with age due to more experience and confidence in making career decisions.

Prioritizing open communication and treating all employees as individuals will act as my major approaches to workplace diversity. Ensuring clear, open, and effective communication within the workplace ensures that individuals are on the same page and that employees have a common direction and understanding (McCann, Sparks, and Kohntopp, 2017). Treating all employees as individuals entails valuing individuals equally, encouraging interaction, and having standard policies and practices within the workplace.

The Future

Throughout the course, I have been able to identify my career path as a lawyer. When I look at injustices around the world, I believe as a lawyer will be able to make a difference. Like any other career, being a lawyer is driven by a desire to help people and defend those who cannot defend themselves to ensure that justice is served equally. I have qualities, personal values, and skills that align with the career, thus making it more suitable for me. For instance, my values are connected to helping people to ensure that they are comfortable and safe. By connecting and working with other experienced lawyers in different law firms and specializations, I will grow my personal life and career path. In the next 5 to 10 years, I see myself as a professional lawyer who can practice law with great dedication to serving justice. I am sure I will grow in my career and have enough experience to handle various aspects of the client’s legal needs with time.  According to the self-concept theory of development, the self-concept changes with time and leads to experience (Penn and Lent, 2019). Therefore, career development is lifelong. Through my qualities, values, and skills, I will choose the right career path, adjust to the changes and develop abilities to perform the career behaviors. Through self-efficacy, I will execute behaviors that are essential to produce certain performance attainments in my career.

References

Bennett Moses, L. (2018). The Need for Lawyers. The Future of Australian Legal Education (Thomson Reuters 2018), UNSW Law Research Paper, (18-46).

Lau, P. L., Chung, Y. B., & Wang, L. (2021). Effects of a career exploration intervention on students’ career maturity and self-concept. Journal of Career Development, 48(4), 311-324.

Lent, R. W., & Brown, S. D. (2020). Career decision making, fast and slow: Toward an integrative model of intervention for sustainable career choice. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 120, 103448.

McCann, J. T., Sparks, B. H., & Kohntopp, T. F. (2017). Leadership integrity and diversity in the workplace. Leadership, 2(5).

Penn, L. T., & Lent, R. W. (2019). The joint roles of career decision self-efficacy and personality traits in the prediction of career decidedness and decisional difficulty. Journal of Career Assessment, 27(3), 457-470.

Sharif, N., Ahmad, N., & Sarwar, S. (2019). Factors influencing career choices. IBT Journal of Business Studies, 15(1), 33-46.