Chapter 3 Post

            I felt that Duffy’s article really hit home for me. I ran cross country and track in high school. During this time of my life, I was a very egocentric and selfish person. I would consistently put a lot of pressure on myself to win every race I competed in. As each year passed, I felt more and more pressure to succeed because I felt that if I didn’t others (family, friends, and teachers) would change their opinion of me. I truly thought this when I was in high school, and I felt the repercussions of it if I did end up losing. This constant pressure and anxiety over something I was blessed with really hurt me as a person. After high school, I really did not want to compete anymore, but I wanted to go to college. My best bet was receiving a scholarship to run. I decided to go to a small Division 2 school called Saint Vincent College.

            My thinking at the time was that it was a small Catholic college; therefore, I wouldn’t have to take it so seriously! What I didn’t expect was actually becoming a Catholic while I was there. After my first year at SVC, I became drawn to religion and what it all entailed. Before college, I was a pagan who didn’t know Christ, so it all was pretty eye-opening for me. After going through RCIA, I viewed my life in a different way. As opposed to be self-centered, I started to believe that I could have an impact on others in my life and community. I started to believe that I could make a difference in someone else’s life.

            This correlates to Duffy’s article because I feel that I would have never made it this far in my teaching career without understanding the importance of my service towards others I come in contact with everyday. Duffy notes Bloch and Richmond’s seven principals about the connection between spirituality and work. This connection can be met when one views work as a calling, believes work has a purpose beyond earning money, works in a setting that consistent with one’s values, and experiences community and companionship at work (Duffy 2006, page 57). To me, teaching isn’t “my” career. Teaching is a calling. Teaching is serving. Teaching is not about me, it is about others.

            Reading about the trait-and-factor theories in chapter 2 and now reading about the learning theory-based and post-modern theories in chapter 3, it is interesting to see the growth of career development theories. In chapter 2, it seems that career choices are made after-the-fact. For example, this is your personality so this is the best job for you. In chapter 3, the theories are really focused on the client. However, in chapter 3, it seems as if the theories focus on how a person gets to be who they are. For example, what the client learned, experiences, and perceives.

            This is not saying that the theories in chapter 3 are the same. Theories based in learning believe that because many of the factors surrounding career choice and adjustment are learned, their theories need to account for learning processes (Brown 2012, page 60). Whereas, postmodern theories base choices off of experience, perception, and perspective. It seems that the environment plays a big role in a person’s decisions in this theory.

            Finally, It was also nice to read about the solution focused career development model considering that I have had some experience using it before. I have enjoyed using this theory because of the focus on goals and strengths. I feel that the client always has ownership and it is up to them to “solve” their problem, and the counselor is there for support and facilitation. After all, the client will be the one who chooses and then acts on the career, not the counselor!

Brown, D. (2012). Career information, career counseling, and career development (10^th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson Education, Inc.

Duffy, R. Sprituality, Religion, and Career Develoment: Current Status and Future Directions. (2006). The Career Development Quarterly: Volume 55 (52 – 63).