Graduate Careers AustraliaA Career Planning and Development Model
Using the SODI Model for Self-AssessmentThe first segment of the SODI (Self-assessment, Opportunity, Decision-making, Implementation) career planning model – Self-assessment, is concerned with identifying and understanding personal characteristics that influence choices – in both learning and work contexts. It is important that when embarking on career decision making that you develop an understanding of yourself as an individual by exploring the personal skills that you bring to learning and work. For example, if a person has the following make up: a strong set of personal interaction skills, a strong interest in scientific matters and a strong need or desire to be in a non-structured environment; these personal characteristics, along with some others, will influence the types of learning and work situations to which the person will be best suited. Identifying and understanding personal characteristics can be a difficult process. All the different components of an individual’s personality come into play during self-assessment and they all have a bearing on what makes a person the way they are. Young people may find it particularly difficult to embark on self-assessment due to a feeling of embarrassment or unease, or a lack of life experience, but self-assessment is a critical component of career development and perseverance is key. The effort will pay off in the end! Personal characteristics include: abilities, aptitudes, cognitive styles, generic/transferable skills, specific/technical skills, personal values, work values, interests, personality, physical attributes and needs. To be an effective career decision maker other self-awareness issues such as achievements, coping strategies, goals and performance may also need to be explored. There are numerous online exercises and tests that examine personal characteristics and some examples appear under the section 'Online Tests' on this website. |
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