Parenting Advice – Helping My Child With Their Career Choice

20th August 2012

Author: MIGAS
Categories: News & Blogs Staff Blog

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Parenting Advice – Helping My Child With Their Career Choice

A question I get asked a lot is, “How do I expose my son or daughter to the world of work” and “how do I help them with their career choice”.

I have always subscribed to the idea that where we start our working life is probably not where we will end it.  For example, I started out as a Fitter in the Royal Australian Navy and now I am the CEO of a major Group Training Scheme in Australia.  These two career paths couldn’t be any further apart; however the skills I learnt as a Fitter are still in use now.

Skills such as teamwork, communication, working in a group, understanding personalities, giving/taking instructions, and asking questions are something that we will learn in every job.  As far as career choices are concerned, MIGAS, and other Group Training Organisations like MIGAS, often offer career advice as part of their service.  In fact, MIGAS is holding a Careers Information Evening on the 19^th September at our Eagle Farm office and I would encourage anyone to come along and talk to our Field Officers and our Recruitment staff about different career options.

As a parent of an 18 year old, I can sympathise with other parents who are trying to influence their offspring down a particular career path.  I have spent endless hours talking with my son about different careers and different career paths and have come to the conclusion that I may have wasted many of these hours, because as with most young people they listen to their mates, and in my son’s case – the people he works with, far more than they listen to their parents.  This can be extremely frustrating at times, but people have to find their own way in the world, make their own mistakes and learn from them, even if it is a hard lesson.  All we can do as a parent is encourage them to follow their own path and, if they trip and fall, pick them back up and give them another shove into the real world.

David Brown
MIGAS CEO

parenting advice