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Question: I am currently in a job that is not suited to either my abilities or interests. I'd like some suggestions for determining what work that is well-suited to my abilities.
Answer Paywizard:
The first thing that you should do is to assess your abilities and interests. In terms of your abilities, focus on determining:
what jobs are best suited to your education level. You may do this by reviewing jobs in The Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook and then searching for jobs on Monster.com or a job search engine such as JuJu;
list the job experiences that you have had and what skills you gained from them;
list the kind of things in which you naturally tend to excel and enjoy. I place particular emphasis on this latter part because you are likely to spend 8-12 hours per day at work. Again, the BLS Handbook can serve as a helpful source to help you consider working conditions, major job duties, and salary for each occupation since you will want to be able to make as informed a decision as possible to find a job you will truly both be good at and want to work hard at in the years to come.
Now, use (2) and (3) to create the best possible resume you can, and begin looking for that new job!
Best of luck with your search!