Purposeful Career Exploration
Goal: Connect what we love and are good at to meaningful career paths and real-world opportunities.
"Figuring out who you want TO BE can help you figure out what you want TO DO."
– Anonymous
Reflect: What does this quote mean to you?
4
Relevant
Vocabulary
Self-Discovery: The process of learning about our strengths, interests, and values.
Career Path: The combination of jobs, roles, education, and training involved in progressing toward career goals.
Value: A personal belief about what in life is important, that guides our behavior and our choices.
WORD BANK WONDERS
Connection
1 volunteer is the Questioner and another volunteer is the Responder.
The Questioner chooses a topic to reveal different options to build a question. The Questioner constructs the question they want to ask the Responder (and the Responder responds).
4
WORD BANK WONDERS
Connection
What
captures the mood you hope to have
a day at work
song
podcast
show
before
during
after
WORD BANK WONDERS
Connection
If you could swap jobs with anyone from a
who would it be and what would you
about it
book
show
game
learn
love
hate
WORD BANK WONDERS
Connection
If you
were a(n)
which career would you be
suited for, and why?
lion
dolphin
owl
best
least
somewhat
WORD BANK WONDERS
Connection
What
makes you feel
and why
place
task
future career
energized
focused
excited
16
Why: When we have a sense of purpose, it can lead to a career that feels meaningful and motivating.
Purposeful Career
Exploration
Hold up 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 fingers to indicate which reason you believe
most influences people’s career paths.
Be ready to share your opinion.
Poll
1
What you love
What you are good at
What jobs are in need
What pays well
Other...
Planning your future can feel like solving a puzzle without having
the picture on the box.
You're expected to choose a path: college, military service, training, or
a career. There are tools, tests, and advice flying at you in every direction. It can feel overwhelming.
2
Educator Share: What influenced you to go into a career in education?
Finding a career is not often a step-by-step process. It’s more like a journey with twists, turns, and unexpected detours—an ongoing process of self-discovery.
We’ll explore a strategy called the Ikigai model to help us find a career path aligned with our purpose.
1/2
Ikigai (ee-key-guy) is a Japanese concept that combines the words iki (meaning “life”) and gai (meaning “worth” or “value”).
Quick Background
1/2
The idea has roots in Okinawan culture and roughly translates to “a reason for being.” Ikigai is about:
- Finding joy
- Using your strengths
- Helping others
- Providing for your needs
Ikigai helps align our future career path with our purpose.
The dictionary defines "purpose" as: What someone wants to achieve or become, guiding their choices, actions, and goals.
Do you know anybody who seems to have a strong sense of purpose? Who comes to mind?
2
Purposeful
Career Exploration
-
Ikigai helps us identify a purpose-based career.
-
The goal is to learn the strategy, not build an entire career path.
-
We will go step by step as we explore the 4 pillars of Ikigai:
1. What I'm good at
2. What I love
3. What our world needs
4. What I can be paid for
Ikigai
Ikigai Example
Finished example below.
On the next slide we'll start our own...
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
Explaining Things
More Positivity
YouTuber
Playing Music
TEACHING
MUSIC
2
Purposeful Career Exploration
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
Directions
Take out a piece
of paper
Draw a circle, leaving space to write
Label as shown
2
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What I Love
Guiding Questions: What activities make you feel the happiest and most fulfilled? What are your passions and interests?
Playing Music
1
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What I'm Good At
Guiding Questions: What skills and talents do you have? What are you naturally good at? What do others compliment you on?
Explaining Things
1
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What the World Needs
Guiding Questions: What are some passions, issues, or values you care about that the world needs more of?
More Positivity
1
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What I Can Be Paid For
Guiding Questions: What are some ways you can make a living or career helping others? Which professions can help you make a positive impact? What jobs are in demand?
YouTuber
1
What I'm Good At
What the World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
Bringing It All Together
Ikigai: Reflect on your answers and try to find a connection between the 4 categories. Write your best answer in the middle of the circle.
TEACHING
MUSIC
2
EXTEND
OR
Click to choose how to move on
END
Find a partner and take turns sharing your Ikigai charts.
Then discuss these prompts together:
- Something we have in common is _____.
- Something I notice is ____.
- Something I think is important to you is ____.
6
In today’s activity, we used Ikigai to practice value-based career exploration.
Your choices won’t always be clear or easy. Remember the Ikigai process as you explore career options and seek paths that feel meaningful, fulfilling, and motivating.
REVIEW
Learning Objective
1
16
Why: When we have a sense of purpose, it can lead to a career that feels meaningful and motivating.
Purposeful Career
Exploration
Virtual Version
In the chat, share a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 to indicate which reason you believe
most influences people’s career paths.
Be ready to share your opinion.
Poll
1
What you love
What you are good at
What jobs are in need
What pays well
Other...
Planning your future can feel like solving a puzzle without having
the picture on the box.
You're expected to choose a path: college, military service, training, or
a career. There are tools, tests, and advice flying at you in every direction. It can feel overwhelming.
2
Educator Share: What influenced you to go into a career in education?
Finding a career is not often a step-by-step process. It’s more like a journey with twists, turns, and unexpected detours—an ongoing process of self-discovery.
We’ll explore a strategy called the Ikigai model to help us find a career path aligned with our purpose.
1/2
Ikigai (ee-key-guy) is a Japanese concept that combines the words iki (meaning “life”) and gai (meaning “worth” or “value”).
Quick Background
1/2
The idea has roots in Okinawan culture and roughly translates to “a reason for being.” Ikigai is about:
- Finding joy
- Using your strengths
- Helping others
- Providing for your needs
Ikigai helps align our future career path with our purpose.
The dictionary defines "purpose" as: What someone wants to achieve or become, guiding their choices, actions, and goals.
Do you know anybody who seems to have a strong sense of purpose? Who comes to mind?
2
Purposeful
Career Exploration
-
Ikigai helps us identify a purpose-based career.
-
The goal is to learn the strategy, not build an entire career path.
-
We will go step by step as we explore the 4 pillars of Ikigai:
1. What I'm good at
2. What I love
3. What our world needs
4. What I can be paid for
Ikigai
Ikigai Example
Finished example below.
On the next slide we'll start our own...
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
Explaining Things
More Positivity
YouTuber
Playing Music
TEACHING
MUSIC
2
Purposeful Career Exploration
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
Directions
Take out a piece
of paper
Draw a circle, leaving space to write
Label as shown
2
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What I Love
Guiding Questions: What activities make you feel the happiest and most fulfilled? What are your passions and interests?
Playing Music
1
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What I'm Good At
Guiding Questions: What skills and talents do you have? What are you naturally good at? What do others compliment you on?
Explaining Things
1
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What the World Needs
Guiding Questions: What are some passions, issues, or values you care about that the world needs more of?
More Positivity
1
What I'm Good At
What The World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
What I Can Be Paid For
Guiding Questions: What are some ways you can make a living or career helping others? Which professions can help you make a positive impact? What jobs are in demand?
YouTuber
1
What I'm Good At
What the World Needs
What I Can
Be Paid For
What I Love
Bringing It All Together
Ikigai: Reflect on your answers and try to find a connection between the 4 categories. Write your best answer in the middle of the circle.
TEACHING
MUSIC
2
EXTEND
OR
Click to choose how to move on
END
1
The career in the center of my chart is ____________________.
IN THE CHAT
2
The part of my chart that makes me feel most proud is ______.
IN THE CHAT
1
1 word that describes my chart is ____________________________.
IN THE CHAT
To end, a few volunteers will share their response to the question below.
What’s something you noticed that a lot of people had in common?
2
Purposeful
Career Exploration
In today’s activity, we used Ikigai to practice value-based career exploration.
Your choices won’t always be clear or easy. Remember the Ikigai process as you explore career options and seek paths that feel meaningful, fulfilling, and motivating.
REVIEW
Learning Objective
1