There are literally thousands of resources designed to help individuals figure out their career direction and the next steps they might take. One of the most popular, easiest to use and understand, and impactful is Dr. Edgar Schein’s Career Anchors: The Changing Nature of Careers Self-Assessment 4th Edition. This 4th edition was published in paperback in 2013, with a new edition scheduled for release in March 2023. Dr. Schein received a BA from the University of Chicago, a Masters from Stanford and received a PhD from Harvard. He was a professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management and died last month. He is recognized as one of the most prominent psychologists in the field of organizational development.
This assessment is, “designed to help you to identify your career anchor and to think about how your values relate to your career choices…Your career anchor is a combination of perceived areas of competence, motives, and values that you would not give up; it represents your real self.”
I have used Schein’s questionnaire with individuals of all ages who are looking at what they are going to do in the next stage of their career. A powerful advantage of the self-assessment is that it includes a questionnaire, with the results of your answers telling you what you have said about what you would not give up.
What follows are examples of how these statements of what you would not give up shaped the career decisions of two separate people to whom I was providing career coaching. I am no longer providing coaching so this is not a post hoping you will hire me.
The first individual was a front-line manager at a nonprofit agency. She had been in the role for four years and was seriously questioning whether to stay in her current job. After she took the Career Anchors questionnaire she saw that her two highest scores were in Service/Dedication to a Cause and Lifestyle. She agreed with the scores, saying that she would not give up the opportunity to pursue work that achieves something of value, such as making the world a better place to live which is the definition of Service and Dedication to a Cause. She also agreed with the fact that she would not want to give up the Lifestyle that her job affords. Based on the conversation that was had about the fact that her job was really meeting her values, she talked with her boss and was able to shift some of the responsibilities that had been making her so unhappy in a way that had her feeling much more positive about her situation.
The second example involved a very bright double PhD scientist who was a Vice-President in a pharmaceutical company. His lowest score by far was on the General Managerial competence and his two highest scores were on Autonomy/Independence and Pure Challenge. It turned out that he had gotten advanced very quickly in his career because of his brilliant mind, engaging personality, the respect that his colleagues had for his work ethic and his ability to get results.
The problem and reason that he had asked for an executive coach was that he hated to manage others and only wanted to be left alone to focus on the very complex molecules that would save many lives. Based on the conversations that we had around the results of the Career Anchors questionnaire he sat down with his boss and told her that he was willing to take a pay cut and a step back in the organization so that he could focus on the research he loved. After multiple conversations, the organization allowed him to make that move without his having to take a pay cut.
To be very clear, both of these talented individuals knew about much of what the Career Anchor results showed them, but had never put those factors together in a way that allowed them to come up with a plan for moving ahead effectively with their career. It is a resource that provides very practical and understandable data from which you might possibly make a more informed career decision.
Have a great year.
Peter Prichard
Website/Blog – https://havepositiveimpact.com/
Author – International #1 Amazon Bestseller and Readers’ Favorite 5 Star Award Recipient – Have a Positive Impact During Uncertain Times