9. Some common myths on careers you should ignore!!!

Otieno, a young man had just completed Form Four. His heart was in journalism but his father, a successful professional would hear none of it. He used his contacts and secured a place for his son in a Medical Training College to pursue pharmaceutical technology. Reluctantly, this young man joined. Armed with a pharmacist certificate Otieno confronted his father with a resolve that had been building up over the two wasted years. “This certificate is all you wanted and you can have it. I am going out now to pursue my career!”.

He found his dream career as a journalist and today he boasts to be the only pharmaceutical technologist who has never dispensed medicine to anybody!.

Otieno’s father believed that a career in pharmacy was better paying than one in journalism. If you are not careful, career myths can be misleading on what one perceives to be a good career from an adviser’s point of view. There are many incompetent career advisers who have easily misled students on their career understanding based on myths.

Myth 1: Some jobs make people rich and others make them poor.

Don’t listen to the many ignorant people who see life in terms of profit and loss. A career helps you to develop your skills, talents and self-fulfillment in a special way that benefits society. It is only incidental that you make money in the process. Often, a job well done attracts good rewards but you cannot start with rewards before doing a job.

Myth 2: There are “men’s jobs” and “women’s jobs”.

Ignore such outdated thoughts and simply follow your interests when choosing your career. There is no scientific evidence to show that men and women are not equal to all careers. In fact, some women excel in law, medicine, architecture and other jobs alongside men. Equally, some men do well as nurses and receptionists where some of these jobs were traditionally considered to be men’s or women’s careers.

Myth 3: Some careers run in families and there is nothing you can do about it.

Perhaps nobody seeks career guidance or ventures out in such families. But you don’t have to be held back by the family career if your interests are elsewhere. Indeed, if you train in a different career you may bring in some skills that the family needs to prosper.

Myth 4: My parents know the career that is best for me.

This is not always so. Sometimes your parents can be dead wrong. Expect some opposition to your career choice and learn to show everybody your point of view. You are the one who will live with the career choke, anyway!

Myth 5: You can make more money as a lawyer, doctor, architect or a tour guide than in any other Job.

Remember the definition of a career is a job that makes you grow in an important way !. Just pursue your dream and riches are merely incidental. Strictly speaking, you get paid for the value that you add to people’s lives through your career. In any case, a career is about self-fulfillment first and money later.

Myth 6: Teaching and nursing are not as good as other careers.

Well, some people get into jobs which are the envy of everybody but they don’t do much there. Others get into careers that may not be so socially visible and they redefine these jobs by setting new standards. Florence Nightingale and Geoffrey Griffins were a nurse and a teacher respectively who made their way into history by excelling in their careers. Whether you join nursing or teaching or whichever career, what matters is the zeal that you take to such jobs and the new heights you will scale in personal development.

Myth 7: Going into the entertainment industry is a waste of time.

Don’t take such comments seriously. The new generation of Kenyan rappers, some of whom boast university degrees, are among the highest paid people around! The advent of many FM radio and television stations in Kenya has greatly opened up the field for those who want to join the entertainment careers.

Myth 8: Higher education and career training are useless nowadays.

The fact that there is a high rate of unemployment should not discourage you. First arm yourself with some training and explore the opportunities even beyond our borders. You can never benefit from an opportunity without the right papers.

Myth 9: Some courses are merely for filing up vacancies and are not marketable at all.

All institutions of higher learning regularly review their training programmes to keep them in line with the job market. It would defeat the purpose of a college or university to train people who have no prospects of getting jobs.

There is no useless course if you have the passion for it.

Myth 10: Getting into business is better than pursuing a career.

You can pursue business even better after getting a career than engaging in it straight from school. Besides, when you have trained for a job you can make better decisions and have a bigger network of contacts to do business with. You can also acquire skills and attitudes that enhance your business.