Trend #1 The search of young people
for their ideal career path
Blog by
Nelis Engel
As a career coach, I regularly speak with young people who don’t feel at home within their organization. They are considering leaving due to a lack of recognition, struggles with work-life balance, company culture, or poor leadership. Furthermore, their search is often hampered by choice overload and uncertainty. Young people fear missing out on ‘better’ opportunities when they commit to a specific job. This has given rise to a notable trend: young people searching for their ideal career path. Fortunately, there’s hope!
Expectations are not met
Many young people struggle to find the right balance between work and private life, while they also try to navigate the abundance of career opportunities. They have expectations of their manager, the work itself, and the conditions, but these aren’t always fulfilled.
So, how do you convince these young people to stay? Among other things, by offering proper guidance, making development opportunities concrete, fostering a positive company culture, and providing attractive secondary benefits within the PME sector (such as extra days off). You just need to start a conversation with them (or, for example, have a career coach do this).
The power of career coaching
Career coaching can play a central role in guiding young people from uncertainty to fulfillment, and gives you the chance to retain them for another 2 to 5 years. To help young people, I show empathy and create a safe environment in which they feel comfortable discussing their needs and expectations openly. In helping them find the right position, I use various strategies:
- Self-reflection and self-awareness: a personality questionnaire provides insight into behavioral traits and underlying values. Encouraging self-reflection helps young people become more aware of their needs and expectations in their professional lives.
- Building self-confidence: identifying strengths and growth opportunities helps to build self-confidence, which is essential for making well-considered choices.
- Career exploration: with games like ‘Laten & Doen’ and ‘Beroepenschatkist & Werkplezier’, they discover jobs that match their interests and skills.
- In-depth evaluations: by exploring tasks, passions, values, and growth opportunities, young people gain a better understanding of where they truly fit.
Our joint mission?
It’s wonderful to see that discovering their strengths and growth opportunities helps these young employees build confidence and make choices they previously didn’t dare to make. Doubt has made way for self-awareness. As an HR professional or manager, you can help your young employees build a meaningful future at your organization by making use of career coaching. That sounds like a great shared mission to me. A mission that, in my view, is accomplished when I empower young people to take ownership of their well-considered career choices.
Also read my colleague Bart’s blog: worrying (about nothing), isn’t that wonderful
Nelis Engel
Career Advisor
I love bringing out the best in people and encouraging them in or toward a job. I believe that people who enjoy their work are happier and more successful.
