Department of Workforce Development

For more information, contact:
Dan Curtin, 920/232-6270

Madison, Wis. -- Understanding one’s personal career objectives can begin with only two questions, says a state job expert.

Developing that understanding adds value to every step along a young adult’s employment path.

"This is part of the planning process," according to Dan Curtain, a labor market analyst for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development located in one of Wisconsin’s 72 Job Centers. "You might consider it the awakening process."

Curtain says developing career objectives begins by answering two basic self-assessment questions:

• What do I want to do?

• Where do I want to do it?

Making these personal commitments is the foundation to finding meaningful work, he stresses.

The next essential step is collecting information on workforce trends, training requirements, and wages. Curtain says this is the winning formula for career development.

"Most of the younger job seekers focus on dollars and cents. That’s typical. They need a job. They don’t always know what they want or who they are."

Because technology is changing the work environment, employers seek workers who not only bring verbal, technological and numeric skills, but also a willingness to learn.

Quality circles and a team approach to problem solving are new workplace norms, and have increased the value of communication skills, he says.

"The single most important ingredient for long range success in any labor market in Wisconsin is flexibility," Curtain says. "You should develop an attitude about learning which enhances your adaptability. The person who has the willingness to enhance skills and learn new skills has the advantage."

Enthusiasm, initiative, sociability, and responsibilities are the characteristics that define today’s work ethic, he says. "Employers place a high value on those personal qualities -- often more than on the technical skills which employers believe they can teach."

"Restructuring, downsizing, rightsizing, whatever you want to call it, will occur well into the next century," Curtain adds. "If you want to survive in the current marketplace, you have to continue to upgrade your skills. Everybody has to consider future training."

Wisconsin Job Centers have resources like job trend data, occupational information videos, and professional staff to ignite interest in the "hot" jobs, make connections to training opportunities, and illuminate what is vanishing from the labor market.

For additional information on exploring career options or job search strategies, contact your Wisconsin Job Center. To learn the address and phone number of the nearest Job Center, call toll free 888/258-9966.