Lorainne Ashley C.

Santos – 12 STEM

Personal Development (Report)

Career and Personal Development
August Turak, author of the book, Business Secrets of the Trappist Monks: One CEO’s Quest for
Meaning and Authenticity, and a contributor to Forbes Magazine, wrote an article about what leaders
must know about personal development. His proposition was that the purpose of developing ourselves is
not just for a successful career in the future, but also for us to become the best person that we ever can be.
Turak wrote:
What do you do for personal development?
The reason I find this question so difficult is that it assumes that personal development is something we
do in order to get “success,” And by success we usually mean having a successful career. It rarely occurs
to anyone in our culture that someone (a Trappist monk for example) might become an artist,
entrepreneur, leader, or politician as a means to personal development and not the other way around.
This entire worldview tragically puts the proverbial cart before the horse. Whether you call it personal
development, personal growth, self – actualization, self-transcendence, or spirituality does not matter.
What matters is realizing that the reason you were born is to become the best human being you can
possible be. Personal development is not a tool for reaching a bigger goal. Becoming a complete human
being is already the biggest and most noble goal you can aspire to.
Often, when we speak of being productive, the first thing that comes to our mind is “work” or
“occupation.” However, as Turak proposed to create a mind-shift in our understanding of personal
growth, he speaks more of a vocation, rather than a career. A vocation is about doing what you love to do
and employing all your knowledge, inherent skills, and personal traits to fulfill your life goals.
Whether one agrees or not with Turak’s proposition about the objective of personal development, that it is
not merely for success in terms of material wealth and fame but in fulfilling one’s fullest potentials as a
person, it is everyone’s personal decision to make. In the end, personal success is defined by the person
and no one else.
A career is a profession that a person may get into, either because he has found a good match between his
life goals, skills, personality, and interests with a dream job, or it may just be a means to earn a living.
While careers can change through time, and this has been proven ever so often, such as the medical
doctor who, after so many years of rigorous study and practice, decided to pursue his passion and went on
to become a chef and restaurant owner (entrepreneur). Vocations are more consistent even in different
situations and conditions. Someone who is passionate about education need not be a teacher or a professor
in an academic setting. Education, in its broadest meaning, can be formal or informal; with formal being
in a school, whereas informal can be in any other situation, such as a social worker training people on
basic hygiene or parenting, for example.

Career Selection Among Filipinos

In the Philippines, education takes top priority among the majority of families after their family’s basic
necessities are met. The belief that a college diploma can improve one’s life is the major factor that drives
many Filipinos to seek out the most popular courses in college that can offer the best chances of
employment, placing education as a top priority. This is evident in the way families literally enshrine the
diplomas received by members of the family and lining it up along the walls of their homes, together with
honor ribbons and medals, if they received any. A college degree is usually perceived as the ticket out of
poverty to a more comfortable life. It is also perceived as a way to garner respect and pride within one’s
community.
In the past, the padre de familia usually selected the courses each of his children would take up. Among
the roster of first choices were courses with titulo or titles, such as medicine, law, accounting,
engineering, and education. Later on, more courses were offered due to increasing job market demands,
new ones were added such as banking and business administration, among others. Newer courses such as
physical therapy and computer science were later added to the preferred list of courses. Then, about a
decade ago, medical nurses were in high in demand globally, which prompted many local colleges and
universities to offer nursing in their course offerings. Eventually, there was a glut of nursing graduates in
the job market which eventually left many nursing graduates to take up employment that is not related to
their nursing degree. Many eventually ended up as call center agents as more business process
outsourcing (BPO) companies established their operations in the country.
The illusion of good-paying jobs and quick employment has pushed many students to pursue college
degrees that oftentimes are not in consonance with their interests, skills, and passions. The pressure to
please their parents has become the basis of a student’s selection of what course to take. In some
instances, however, adolescents who were given a free hand in choosing their course usually graduate on
time, with good grades, and happily find the right job.
For so many years, the academic and business sectors have discussed the mismatch between what skills
college graduates learn in school versus the skills needed in the workplace. While this is a different topic
altogether, we can point out that the selection of the fields of study available to the Filipino high school
graduate is verry limited in variety compared to the selection of courses found in other countries. There
are many other fields of study not yet popular or available in the Philippines, such as the highly
specialized fields of nanotechnology or renewable energy engineering.
Entrepreneurship is becoming more popular lately, especially among the generation of millennials. The
government is encouraging young people to become entrepreneurs and set up their own businesses, as
small businesses, when put together, are believed to generate more jobs than larger ones. On the other
hand, other courses suffer due to negative perceptions. For example, arts and crafts, trade and industrial,
or technical and vocational courses, which many young Filipinos (and their parents) stay away from
because these are non-diploma courses, are usually perceived as inferior, low-paying, and often
associated with manual labor, and therefore not that socially appealing. Apparently, the notion of dignity
in labor does not always apply in the Philippines where most college graduates would rather be in white-
collar jobs sitting in air-conditioned offices and having social lives that evolve around coffee shops and
trendy dining places. Another often-overlooked career is that of a religious since this is often perceived as
a “vocation” or a calling. The religious vocation of a priest/brother, a nun/sister, a pastor or lay religious
(other religions provide similar vocations like Buddhist monks, and Muslim imams, among others)
provides a spiritual dimension and commitment to a career. Many religious also have regular careers like
anybody else. Aside from being “prayer warrior,” many religious, both locally and in other parts of the
world, contribute to the society as teachers, guidance counselors, scientists, doctors, chefs, financial
advisers, social workers, investment bankers, psychologists, school administrators, health workers,
restaurant operators, and many others.
Key Sentences:
The belief that a college diploma can improve one's life is the major factor that drives many Filipinos to
seek out the most popular courses in college that can offer the best chances of employment, placing
education as a top priority.
A college degree is usually perceived as the ticket out of poverty to a more comfortable life.
While this is a different topic altogether, we can point out that the selection of the fields of study available
to the Filipino high school graduate is verry limited in variety compared to the selection of courses found
in other countries.
There are many other fields of study not yet popular or available in the Philippines, such as the highly
specialized fields of nanotechnology or renewable energy engineering.
Another often-overlooked career is that of a religious since this is often perceived as a "vocation" or a
calling.

Career Development Theories

Richard A. Hansen of the City College of the City University of New York, who conducted a study in
1976 on the career development of high school students who were talented in science, is often quoted in
his definition of career development. Hansen defines career development as the “continuous lifelong
process of developmental experiences that focuses on seeking, obtaining, and processing information
about self, occupational, and educational alternatives, lifestyles, and role options” (Overview of Career
Development, 2018). In other words, we go through life doing things to earn a living while we reflect on
what we have learned and where else we can employ these skills and knowledge to improve our skills.
Career development is a lifelong process that integrates all our learning experiences through time. These
life experiences include the events we go through, the roles we play, the behavior we act out, the constant
validation of who we are as a person, what inspires and motivates us, and what accomplishments give us
fulfillment and meaning. Living in a dynamic and constantly changing world, our careers can also shift
and adjust to the changing times and our changing needs. Hence, you will hear of professionals who
change careers that may or may not be related to each other. For example, an actress joining a religious
order of contemplative nuns, or a litigation lawyer who refocuses his interest toward renewable or
“green” energy, or a guidance counselor who becomes a fund manager for micro-financing, are just some
examples of how people change careers. In career counseling, this change in careers is sometimes referred
to as “reinventing one’s self.”
There are four popular career development theories often quoted and used in career counseling. As
theories, these concepts try to explain and explore how we choose the career path to take. The four
popular career development theories are:
1) Trait and Factor Theory – skills, values, interests, and personality traits are analyzed and matched
with job factors or an occupational profile. The Trait Factor Theory was formulated by vocation
experts Frank Parson and E.G. Williamson back in 1900s, and is still the basis of many career
counseling and aptitude tests.
2) Personality Type-Work Environment Congruence Theory – is an offshoot of Parson’s Trait
Factor Theory where John Holland (Hutchison & Niles, 2016) identified six personality types that
match the same six environments he identified: Realistic (working with hands and tools),
Investigative (usually conducts scientific investigations), Artistic (engaged in creative form),
Social (interacting with people to educate, inform, etc.), Enterprising (often using verbal and
persuasive skills to engage people), and Conventional (enjoys order, structured environments,
 routine). Holland theorized that people look for an environment that they can freely express
themselves and do what they are good at. A person usually made up of all six personality
categories will have one dominant type but may exhibit up to three of these types. People in
search of their career path are often confused because they mix their dominant type with their
other preferences. We often hear a high school student saying he or she is interested in
engineering (realistic) but would also like to design or experiment on cooking different types of
dishes (artistic).
3) Social Learning and Career Decision Theory – this theory is based on Albert Bandura’s theory of
self – efficacy, which means that a person may exercise control over his or her thoughts, belief,
and actions, and that self – efficacy is the predictor of behavior. Self – efficacy is defined as the
belief in one’s capabilities to plan, organize, and execute a set of actions that will produce the
desired results. Self – efficacy may be construed as the same as self – competence. Bandura
explains that self – efficacy is tied to motivation, which is the most important driver of one’s
career development. For example, you want to be a pilot and you start imagining yourself as
flying an aircraft. You believe you will be a good pilot so to increase and improve your skills,
you enroll in a flying school. You read stories about flying, and may even interview pilots just to
get a feel of the skill. Since you believed you will be a good pilot, your behavior aligns to what
you believe in. From there, you apply for a job as a pilot in an airline or private company in need
of good pilots. Another prominent of this theory is John D. Krumboltz who theorized that social
learning is the basis of our career decisions and development, and that people choose their careers
based on what they know and have learned. Krumboltz identified four main factors that influence
career choice: genetic influences, environmental conditions and events, learning experiences, and
skills such as goal setting, information gathering and self-observation. (Krumboltz, 2009)
4) Developmental or the Life-Span or Life-Space Theory – proposed by Donald Super (Hutchison &
Niles, 2016) who based the theory that people usually change careers during specific life stages
as the need to express their constantly changing self – concepts occur as their careers mature.
Super identified five life stages: growth (from early childhood to early teens clarifying and
identifying preferences), exploration (from early teens to mid-20s making career decisions),
establishment (from mid-20s to mid-40s engaging in work experiences), maintenance (from mid-
40s to mid-60s maintaining or improving status), and decline (from mid-60s to old age). Super
believes that persons are always in constant change and go through life learning and doing new
things while changing roles in the process. We often hear of people in midlife talking about
reinventing themselves and in the process acquiring new set of skills and attitudes, and occupy
themselves with new things they have never done before. An example of this is a medical doctor
who has practiced his profession for so many years only to quit being a doctor to become an
entrepreneur and chef. Always bear in mind that there is no particular theory that can explain
everything about career development. The challenge to us is to develop our own approach and
methodology in finding out our career choices. Keep in mind that career choices may change
across time for many possible reasons since our life circumstances are also in a state of flux or
constant change. We also have to include in our methodology our distinct cultural character
nuances that may not necessarily have been reflected in any of the theories presented.
Key Sentences:
Richard A. Hansen of the City College of the City University of New York, who conducted a study in
1976 on the career development of high school students who were talented in science, is often quoted in
his definition of career development.
Career development is a lifelong process that integrates all our learning experiences through time.
Living in a dynamic and constantly changing world, our careers can also shift and adjust to the changing
times and our changing needs.
Hence, you will hear of professionals who change careers that may or may not be related to each other.
In career counseling, this change in careers is sometimes referred to as "reinventing one's self."
It is an offshoot of Parson's Trait Factor Theory where John Holland (Hutchison & Niles, 2016) identified
six personality types that match the same six environments he identified: Realistic (working with hands
and tools), Investigative (usually conducts scientific investigations), Artistic (engaged in creative form),
Social (interacting with people to educate, inform, etc.),
Holland theorized that people look for an environment that they can freely express themselves and do
what they are good at.
A person usually made up of all six personality categories will have one dominant type but may exhibit
up to three of these types.
People in search of their career path are often confused because they mix their dominant type with their
other preferences.
We often hear a high school student saying he or she is interested in engineering (realistic) but would also
like to design or experiment on cooking different types of dishes (artistic).
This theory is based on Albert Bandura's theory of self – efficacy, which means that a person may
exercise control over his or her thoughts, belief, and actions, and that self – efficacy is the predictor of
behavior.
Bandura explains that self – efficacy is tied to motivation, which is the most important driver of one's
career development.
For example, you want to be a pilot and you start imagining yourself as flying an aircraft.
From there, you apply for a job as a pilot in an airline or private company in need of good pilots.
Another prominent of this theory is John D. Krumboltz who theorized that social learning is the basis of
our career decisions and development, and that people choose their careers based on what they know and
have learned.

Internal Factors Affecting One’s Choice of Career

Challenges are real for everyone. Even in ideal situations where there are minimal challenges like
financial constraints and parental approval, other obstacles might still be present. Let us take a look at the
internal factors that may affect your decision on your career choice.
1) Self – concept or self – identity
If your self-identity is not as solid as it should be, then choosing a career or even a course to take
up in college will be difficult. There is a need to know and understand what you want to do or not
want to do. This is tied on how you see and think of yourself. For example, you want to become a
medical doctor, but then you think you do not have perseverance or the intelligence to become
one, that self-defeating thought will take you miles away from fulfilling your dream. Your values
will also play a role in your career choice. People who are very much into helping other people
 will be unhappy in a work situation where profits take highest priority over other important things
like developing human resources.
Key Sentences:
If your self-identity is not as solid as it should be, then choosing a career or even a course to take up in
college will be difficult.
There is a need to know and understand what you want to do or not want to do.
This is tied on how you see and think of yourself.
Your values will also play a role in your career choice.
2) Personal preferences
You might have decided to take up accountancy but your mother told you that being a nurse, like
one of your aunts, will provide you with more opportunities to earn much more money especially
when you work abroad. This usually happens in many Filipino homes. For parents, they will
always think of the best for their child. However, no matter how good their intentions are, it can
backfire if the child feels pressured to do something different from what she wants for herself,
and may suffer the unhappiness for a long time just to please her parents. There are some
instances when the adolescent will abide by the wishes of the parents over what college course to
take. Take for example the career story of Joey.

Joey always wanted to become a copywriter for an advertising agency. His father’s wish was for
him to take up engineering. Being the eldest in his family, Joey set aside his personal preference
in deference to his parents. He took up engineering, did well since he was quite intelligent,
graduated on time, and then after that, he took the board exams. When he passed the board
exams, he went to his father and gave his engineering diploma and his professional license and
told his father now that he has fulfilled his father’s wish, he would like to fulfill his own wish of
becoming a copywriter. The father allowed him to take his destiny in his hands. Joey became a
successful copy writer and eventually became the president of an advertising agency.
Key Sentences:
You might have decided to take up accountancy but your mother told you that being a nurse, like one of
your aunts, will provide you with more opportunities to earn much more money especially when you
work abroad.
For parents, they will always think of the best for their child.
There are some instances when the adolescent will abide by the wishes of the parents over what college
course to take.
3) Motivation
The drive to fulfill one’s fullest potentials is the best motivation any person can ever have in
living a meaningful life. Sure, there are some whose motivations evolve around amassing wealth
or obtaining power, but the majority of Filipinos are motivated primarily by their desire to
improve the quality of their family’s lives. Millions of Filipinos are now working abroad for this
very reason. They went to college to take up a course that can provide them with employment
abroad. Once they graduated, they ventured out into the world to seek their own fortune for
themselves, as well as for their families. When they have saved enough, they return home to
 pursue their personal dreams. We hear plenty of success stories of OFWs coming back and
setting up their own businesses, and succeeded in doing so. A person without any motivation will
end up wasting a life of unfulfilled potentials.
Key Sentences:
The drive to fulfill one's fullest potentials is the best motivation any person can ever have in living a
meaningful life.
Sure, there are some whose motivations evolve around amassing wealth or obtaining power, but the
majority of Filipinos are motivated primarily by their desire to improve the quality of their family's lives.
Millions of Filipinos are now working abroad for this very reason.
When they have saved enough, they return home to pursue their personal dreams.
A person without any motivation will end up wasting a life of unfulfilled potentials.
4) Self-confidence
“Yes, I can!” “Kaya ko ito!” Notwithstanding the challenges an adolescent face after high school,
the self – confident person will keep his eyes on his goals, and declare to the world that he can do
it and will succeed in the pursuit of his dreams.
5) Personal skills
As children, we already learned certain skills just by observing our parents and siblings,
classmates, and school authorities. Basic education teaches us the hard skills we need to acquire
so we may qualify for higher education, such as learning math and the sciences. The softer skills
such as dealing with people, or the skill to communicate a feeling or a thought nonverbally, are
skills that are not taught in our education system. Be aware of the inherent skills that you have.
Ask yourself what you like and enjoy doing. If you enjoy drawing, then that is a skill. If you like
to listen to music and learn how to play a musical instrument, then that is another skill. If you can
listen to people and put their ideas together, that is a skill called synthesizing ideas. If you can tell
what is not right about a person’s overall image, it means you have the eye for proportions, color
coordination, design, poise, and style. The skill that you have may be hidden because some
people around you do not accept it or you may be afraid to show it because you might be
misjudged. Have the courage to stand up and take the relevant course that will hone your skills
and be the master of your own destiny.
Key Sentences:
Basic education teaches us the hard skills we need to acquire so we may qualify for higher education,
such as learning math and the sciences.
The softer skills such as dealing with people, or the skill to communicate a feeling or a thought
nonverbally, are skills that are not taught in our education system.
Be aware of the inherent skills that you have.
Ask yourself what you like and enjoy doing.
Have the courage to stand up and take the relevant course that will hone your skills and be the master of
your own destiny.
6) Personality Traits
 Knowing your personality traits will definitely help you in choosing a career. Certain traits are
compatible and matched with certain types of work or occupation according to Holland’s trait
factor theory. What are some of your personality traits? Are you the quiet type who would rather
do work alone than with a group? Or are you the more sociable type who enjoys working with a
team? Do you have a knack for details or are you irritated by them? Would you rather memorize
information rather than analyze them? Later on, we will engage in some exercises to help you
identify your personality traits.
7) Personal health
The condition of your health is a major factor in the career choice you will make. Are you healthy
enough to take on the rigors of some tough courses like law or medicine? You might aspire to
become a physical education specialist but your asthma or allergies are getting in the way. Many
health conditions can be handled given the proper guidance from a professional medical
specialist. In many instances, however, physical conditions or health issues did not deter certain
individuals in pursuing their dreams
8) Emotional considerations
Generally, it is difficult to make a decision when one is experiencing some strong emotions such
as anger or sadness. Oftentimes, an emotionally disturbed individual will end up deciding on the
wrong thing. Check yourself when you are deciding on what course to take. It is always best to be
level-headed and calm when making these life-directing decisions.
9) Self-sabotaging thoughts
Self-sabotaging thoughts are thought that deter a person from developing a healthy and
wholesome self-concept. Statements such as “I cannot do this. I will never succeed.” “I am not
intelligent enough for that course.” “Nobody believes in me, so why should I even believe in
myself?” These are some examples of stumbling blocks in your journey toward self-actualization.
Knowing one’s strengths and weaknesses will put a person’s feet on the ground and make him
realistic about his capabilities and limitations. However, to immediately put a barrier to one’s
dream is to sabotage what could have been a realization of that dream. Many of these challenges
are real, but there are some that are just figments of one’s imagination that sow fear in the heart.