1. “ MULTIPOTENTIALITY: ” “You can do anything you want to do
“ MULTIPOTENTIALITY: ” “You can do anything you want to do.” “What do you want to do first ?”
Multipotentiality or Multitalented :
Is it Good or Bad for the Gifted Child ?
“ LIFE-SPAN CAREER COUNSELING CAN
MAKE A DIFFERENCE .”

2. DEFINING MULTIPOTENTIALITY:
ABILITY TO SELECT & DEVELOP MANY CAREER OPTIONS: WIDE VARIETY OF INTERESTS, APTITUDES & ABILITIES (Frederickson & Rothney,1972)
CONCEPT THAT ONE CAN SELECT & DEVELOP MANY COMPETENCIES TO A HIGH LEVEL. (Fredrickson,1979)
CONDITION WHERE ONE HAS INTERESTS & ABILITIES TO PURSUE MULTIPLE DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES & GOALS (Rysiew, Shore, & Carson, 1994)

3. Main Sources of Career Indecision:
Inadequate or inaccurate information
Lack of confidence & decision-making skills
Faulty self-observation
Pressure to please others by making the perfect career choice
Girls a need to meet career & family goals
Parental education & personal factors (anxiety)
Early or late decision-making

4. “THE GOOD SIDE”
HAVE THE OPTION OF MANY POTENTIALLY GOOD CHOICES, EARN HIGH SCORES ON ABILITY & ACHIEVEMENT TESTS, DIVERSE STRENGTHS, MULTIPLE EDUCATIONAL-VOCATIONAL INTERESTS, HAVE MORE THAN ONE CAREER, USE LEISURE ACTIVITIES TO DEVELOP AREAS OF ABILITIES & INTERESTS, HAVE PEER DISCUSSIONS & GROUP WORK WITH OTHER MULTIPOTENIAL YOUTH, EXPLORE BROAD CATEGORIES, USE CAREER COUNSELING AS A VALUE-BASED ACTIVITY

5. THE BAD SIDE: PRODUCES CONFLICT & STRESS:
DIFFICULTIES IN MAKING DECISIONS BETWEEN CHOICES ;“OVERCHOICE SYNDROME”, LACK OF DECISION-MAKING SKILLS, OVERWHELMING CAREER OPTIONS, COMPLEXITY OF DECISION MAKING, DECISIONS BASED ON STATUS & EARNINGS, PERFECTIONISM, GOAL SETTING, DELAYED CAREER SELECTION, LONG-TERM SCHOOLING, DELAY OF INDEPENDENCE, EMOTIONALLY DRAINING, FINANCIALLY DRAINING, FEEL COERCED BY OTHERS

6. THE GIFTED AND TALENTED CHILD AND MULTIPOTENTIALITY:
HIGH ACHIEVEMENT TEST SCORES, OPPORTUNITIES
MANY ACADEMIC & EXTRACURRICULAR INTERESTS
CAREER EXPLORATION BEGINS EARLY
ABILITY TO PURSUE ADVANCED DEGREES
FAMILY OF ORIGIN SYSTEM
MAINLY CONCERNS THOSE WITH MODERATELY HIGH IQ’s ( )
ACADEMICALLY TALENTED, STRAIGHT “A” STUDENTS
MULTIPLE INTERESTS, TWO OR MORE OUTSTANDING DIFFERENT ABILITIES
MORE SENSITIVE TO SOCIAL NEEDS & MOTIVATION

7. SIGNS THAT MULTIPOTENTIALITY IS A CONCERN:
MAY BEGIN EARLY, THE PATH FROM EDUCATION TO CAREER IS NOT ALWAYS SMOOTH,
COMPLICATED BY SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS & NEEDS OF THE GIFTED CHILD.

8. MORE SIGNS FOR CONCERN AS A CHILD GETS OLDER:

9. MORE CONCERNS: STUDENT MAINTAINS HIGH GRADES,

10. MORE CONCERNS: May encounter dilemma of opportunities lost.

11. MORE CONCERNS: Despite excellence high performance & evaluations,

12. LIFE-SPAN CAREER COUNSELING: Includes developmental, social, and psychological transitions.
CAREERS ARE FORGED
LONG SERIES OF DECISION-MAKING
DEVELOPING ATTITUDES
CAREER EXPLORATION
CAREER PLANNING
SELF-REFLECTING
RESTRUCTURES OF BELIEFS
BUILDING PERSONALITY

13. INDIVIDUALIZED, MULIDIMENSIONAL, & DIFFERENTIATED COUNSELING HELPS:
ABILITIES / INTERESTS EXPLORATION
ABILITY / INTEREST TESTS
VALUES / NEEDS CLARIFICATION
LIKES, LEISURE ACTIVITIES & SELF-REFLECTION
DESIRED PERSONAL PRIORITIES / PERFERED LIFESTYLES
HONORS & AP STUDENTS CREATING NEW CAREERS
HIGH-ABILIITY STUDENTS & GOALS OR ACCOMPLISHMENTS
SOCIETAL TRENDS & MENTORSHIPS OR CAREER COACHES
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING , REAL-LIFE, CONCURRENT CAREERS
BEGIN PROCESS - DELAY DECISION-MAKING UNTIL COLLEGE

14. INTERVENTION STRATEGIES FOR MULTIPOTENTIALITY :
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL:
Provide exposure to the world of work
Encourage career fantasies
Encourage focusing activities (projects)
Identity development
Use biographies of eminent people
Evaluate skills, talents, & interests to help them understand areas of greatest interest

15. MORE INTERVENTIONS : JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL:
Discuss meaning & value of work
Family & community values of work
Volunteer work & job shadowing
Prioritize & decide on few extracurricular activities
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL:
Vocational testing
Visit colleges of Interest
More volunteer work
Internships
Core curriculum
Value-based guidance
Avoid conforming or stereotype careers
Explore career models

16. INTERVENTIONS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS & YOUNG ADULTS:
Seek career counseling with assessments
Vocational interests, needs, and values
Enroll in a career planning class
Encourage careful course selection
Avoid conformist & stereotyped major choices
Seek a mentor, Liberal Arts as a Major
Prepare to enter any of several fields
Engage in long-term goal setting and planning

17. Decision-making stages: (Clarke Carney & Cinda Wells, “Discover the Career Within You”)
Awareness- I need to choose
Self-assessment- Who am I ?
Exploration- Expanding or narrowing options
Integration- Putting it together
Commitment- Choosing Occupation, program of study, or job
Implementation- My choice- ‘just do it’
Reevaluation- I made a good choice ?(on-going)

18. LIFESPAN CAREER GUIDANCE FOR MULTIPOTENTIALITY:
Prepares the gifted for many options by acknowledging occupational interests, competencies, creativity, and preferences may indeed change over time. A collaboration for career counseling would involve classroom teachers, teachers of the gifted & talented program, parents (they know the child), and counselors.

19. THE GIFTED CHILD DEVELOPS:
A PERSONAL DEFINITION OF IDENTITY, ACHIEVEMENT, & CAREER SUCCESS AFTER CAREFUL SELF-ANALYSIS OF ABILITIES, LIFE GOALS, AND OCCUPATIONAL POSSIBILITIES.
WITH PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY THEY EXERT CONTROL OVER THEIR LIFE BY MAKING GOOD DECISIONS; THE REST JUST HAPPENS, THEREFORE, THEY ADJUST AND ADAPT TO CHANGES IN CAREER AND IN LIFE.

20. Philomena M. P. Bernard, Counselor
Questions / Comments ?
Philomena M. P. Bernard, Counselor /