Venturing out on your own to establish a career you can be proud of isn’t easy. There will be challenges on the way, especially if you don’t know what you want to do. Your friends and colleagues may all seem to have planned their next steps. The more you think about the future, the more you worry about making a mistake. When you close your eyes, if you can’t see where you want to be in five years, maybe it’s time to set a career goal.
The first thing you should know is that everyone’s journey is different, so don’t shy away or feel embarrassed to ask for help. If you don’t know what you want to do, identify your interests, including your likes, dislikes and passions. Knowing what you don’t like or want is just as important to figuring out what motivates you. Understanding yourself and what you want should help you narrow your focus to careers that you find intriguing. If you’re really stuck, consider a career coach or signing up for career counselling with an employment service. It’s going to take time and perseverance to find the field that speaks to you, so don’t expect an answer overnight.
Once you’ve figured out what moves you, the next step is to set SMART goals. You may have heard of SMART goals before, and Seneca College has a blog which explains what they are and how to set them. According to the blog, SMART goals “ensure your goals are clear, focused and achievable.” [1] Here’s a quick refresher of the SMART acronym according to Seneca’s blog:
Specific: Clearly state what you want to achieve and how you will do it.
Measurable: Include metrics to track and determine whether you’ve done enough to reach your goal.
Achievable: The goal needs to be realistically achievable within your set time.
Relevant: The goal must contribute to achieving a greater overall objective.
Timely: Goals must have a deadline to create a sense of urgency and ensure they are completed in a reasonable amount of time.
By setting SMART goals, you give yourself something to strive for to help you reach an overall objective that you want to achieve. You might also consider setting goals to get out in public and meet new people through networking. Networking is an essential skill that everyone needs to develop regardless of the profession you want to break into.
Arranging coffee chats, which was recently covered in a blog called Mastering Coffee Chats: A Guide for Young Professionals, is one approach you can take to start building your network. The more connections you make the greater the chance to gain crucial advice through experiences you may not have had yet. Getting to know your connections and learning from their experiences could also lead to finding a mentor.
Your hypothetical goal: Make some new connections
1. Contact some professionals you would like to connect with on LinkedIn by July 1, 2025.
2. Send personalized messages to each professional connection by July 15, 2025.
3. Ask connections for coffee chats virtually or in-person by August 5, 2025.
4. Prepare questions for your connections by August 10, 2025.
Let’s pretend your professional goal is to become an art director at a successful marketing or advertising agency. For the purposes of this example, let’s assume you’ve already taken a graphic design program and have graduated. Besides education and experience, you’ll need a portfolio to demonstrate your skills and a resume listing your accomplishments.
You can’t become an art director without nurturing your talent, practicing, laying out ads, being familiar with photo editing and illustration software like Adobe Creative Suite. In other words, you need to practice in order to build up your confidence and your talent.
Your hypothetical goal: Gain experience to become an art director
1. Research some agencies you could apply to by July 1, 2025.
2. Complete the latest version of your portfolio with the best pieces by July 15, 2025.
3. Update your resume and cover letter showcasing your skills by August 5, 2025.
4. Start applying for internships and volunteer opportunities by August 15, 2025.
Now that you’ve created some SMART goals, wrote them down and have a plan ready, all you need to do is follow through, one step at a time. If you want to achieve something, it’s up to you to hold yourself accountable. If you don’t know where to start, the Government of Canada Job Bank website has a page dedicated to career planning including a career quiz, job profiles, labour market information, job transitioning tools and more. [2] Whether you want to set up a coffee chat, become an art director, or anything else, while you may find people to help you along the way, no one is going to push you to succeed. Remember, as the famous athlete Bo Jackson once said, “Set your goals high, and don't stop till you get there.”
[1] “SMART Goal Setting” Seneca Polytechnic, https://students.senecapolytechnic.ca/spaces/219/get-involved-with-student-life/blogs/general/10519/smart-goal-setting
[2] “Choose a Career” Job Bank, The Government of Canada, 18 March 2025, https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/career-planning
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