When interviewing for a new job (and career), one of the questions that you may get asked consistently in interviews is: “What are your plans for the next five years?” or “Where do you intend to be five years from now?”

It seems that as far as careers go, five years seems to be a kind of median in terms of time frame for career advancement. If you have not progressed to the next level or two above where you started within five years, or do not personally feel fulfilled with where you are, perhaps you ought to seriously consider changing careers, or at the very least your professional focus.

In choosing a career, take stock first of what your talents are and where your interests lie.

This can help narrow down your educational requirements. Once you actually enter into a job, focus on the experience and commit yourself to it. This way you can start to identify your preferences as to what environment you work best in, what inspires and nurtures your creativity, and how to leverage your aptitude into an excellent compensation package.

Above all, keep learning throughout your job and be willing to adapt. In the end you may end up being able to carve your own niche and blaze your own path to riches.

Choosing a career in today’s world can be one of the most empowering and creative endeavors someone undertakes. It is also one that can seem overwhelming and can easily seem like a fruitless chore. It is important to keep in mind that in today’s world there are just as many career paths as there are people, such that how a person applies their knowledge, skill set, and aptitude is just as important as knowing which direction one is headed. In choosing a career, take stock first of what your talents are and where your interests lie.

This can help narrow down your educational requirements. Once you actually enter into a job, focus on the experience and commit yourself to it. This way you can start to identify your preferences as to what environment you work best in, what inspires and nurtures your creativity, and how to leverage your aptitude into an excellent compensation package. Above all, keep learning throughout your job and be willing to adapt. In the end you may end up being able to carve your own niche and blaze your own path to riches.

Then again, that’s my opinion based on the limited knowledge that I have of the subject.

I also have to agree with “ptkrvcc” that this is something that seems more in line with what SJC does. However, I think an argument could be made that this falls under “community service.”

Second, this plan needs to spell out what part time workers are going to get. Long ago I worked in a place where you had to join a union and your pay/benefits were all decided between management and union bosses. Anyway, the union was very interested in wages and benefits for full time workers and making sure that seniority was the only factor considered for pay raises and promotions. Needless to say the company readily agreed and never again hired another full time employee.

As for where the money is going to come from to pay for this, the obvious answer is the students. Normally I would say the students would balk at paying another dollar or two per credit. After all, Walmart has a reputation for selling products made in sweat shops for cheap and paying their employees so poorly they can’t afford to shop at Walmart. And they rode that game plan to the top of the retail industry because people worry about saving a dollar themselves and not about other people making enough to live off of for full time work. However, even with a cost increase RVCC would still be a whole lot less expensive than a four year school. I don’t imagine anybody would decide against RVCC over a couple bucks, when they would need to spend that anyway for gas to go somewhere else. And with some marketing of the fact that RVCC makes sure its contractors pay a fair wage, who knows maybe they will get a few more students who still think doing the right thing is the right thing to do.

Brock Haussamen