Hosted By: Sydney M. Perate, M.S. Bridges

Career Planning & Discovery – Phase 1: Person Planning (Discovering Who) – Phase 2: Job Exploration (Discovering What) – Phase 3: Action Plan (Discovering How)

Person Planning “Getting to know yourself” Identify Supports; Ask who will help me with my career? First Career Planning Meeting 4 critical aspect when looking for a job match Checking In

Identifying Supporters Supporters include people who; Are their allies, Individuals who have helped achieve goals in the past, People they can count on, People who know them the best, Individuals who will be positive & connected to the community

1 st Career Planning Meeting Considerations 1.Set Time & Date when the most people will be able to attend.. 2.Location should be what is most comfortable for client NOT convenient for you! 3.Who will be responsible for inviting supporters? How will the invitations be made?

1 st Career Planning Meeting Agenda Thank everyone for coming Have everyone introduce themselves & how they know client Purpose of the meeting (i.e. who, what, how) Time frames (start, finish and that you will need to get together again) Why you are bringing all of your supporters together Ground rules: (focused on you and your goals for employment, being positive, focusing on the possibilities and creating action steps to move you towards your job and career goals, etc.)

Group Activity

1 st Career Planning Meeting Suggested Areas to Cover What your day looks like now What you like and don’t like about your day – what would you change Your skills and interests Places you spend time Likes/dislikes Hobbies and other interests Your fears and worries Your hopes and dreams

4 Critical Aspects Everyone has when looking for employment… 1.Conditions: Non-negotiable, must haves 2.Preferences: Things you would like to have in a job but if all of them are not there it will not keep you from accepting the job. 3.Contributions: Skills, abilities and talents you bring to the new job. 4.Supported Needs: Things you will need to be successful at your new job.

CONDITIONS & PREFERENCES Factors to Consider Schedule Salary/Pay rate Promotions Physical Characteristics Learning style and preferences Environmental concerns Dress/Appearance

CONTRIBUTIONS Factors to Consider Specific skills for that job. Past work experiences Things you are good at Talents Attributes: – Good attitude – Sense of Humor – Team Player – Hard Worker – Quick Learner – Gets along with co- workers – Will show up on time

SUPPORTED NEEDS Factors to Consider Making contact with employers Interviewing skills Getting to and from work Learning styles that work best for client Job accommodations

Checking In How did your first meeting go? What did you like about the meeting? What didn’t you like about the meeting? What would you change at future meetings? Do you have the right people on your planning team? Are they excited and offering a lot of information? Do they understand what your goals are? Are there people on your team who are not positive and supportive? Can you get them to support you or will you have to think about not inviting them to future meetings? Is your agenda moving forward? Can you tell from the information you have gathered that the planning will lead to employment? What is the agenda for the next meeting?

Job Exploration (Discovering What) Use the information you have gathered during the person planning phase and explore jobs by… – Visiting employers that have jobs available – Observe individuals doing the job your client is interested in – Conduct an informal interview – Visit a career center – Take educational classes

Career Exploration Worksheet How Will You LearnWhat Did You Learn? Jobs/Careers ofMore About It? Take what you learned and add this information to your Interest Informational Interviews, likes, dislikes, conditions, Internship, On the Job preferences, contributions and Training, etc. supports you might need

Action Plans – Developed from all the information gathered through Career Planning. If done properly, it should paint a picture of the types of jobs that make sense for the person. – These plans set the direction for job search efforts – Note: If the picture isn’t clear, the plans focus needs to be more on discovery/career exploration activities.

Action Plan Example Action Step Who is When will Done Follow-up Needed Responsible? it Be Done? √

DID YOU KNOW?

Action Plan My Connections Worksheet Types of Jobs and Businesses Who Have Who Has Personal When Will You Make Results of Careers Connections to This These Types of Jobs Contact? Contact Business?

Action Plan Contact with potential employers Wrong Way Hi, my disabled nephew is looking for work. Do you have any openings? Better Way Hi, my nephew is looking for a job and is really interested in this type of work. He is a great guy and has some experience doing this and some other work through school and various jobs. He is one of those people who is hard working and eager to learn new things. He is a lot of fun to be around and has a great sense of humor. I was wondering when would be a good time that he could come down and talk to you.

GROUP ACTIVITY

Checking In Do you feel your plan is moving you towards your goals for employment? - If not, what changes do you need to make? If you and your supporters have made contacts with potential employers, how did it go? – Do you need to make changes? Do you need to look for more connections? Did the potential jobs seem to match what you are looking for? Have you taken a look at your Action Plan? Are the action items being worked on? Do you need to develop other steps to keep moving you forward? If you haven’t met with a potential employer but will soon, are you getting ready for it? (practice interviews, having the right clothes, a list of questions to ask, etc.) If you have, or are, getting close to accepting a job have you reviewed and added to the Supports section? You will want to go back and review those as it is critical to do your best to address these very early on.

Thanks to our sponsors Anyone you recruit Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities Bridges