Know Yourself - Get Started

Having purpose is the thing that guides you forward offering you a sense of direction and motivation. Purpose can influence your behaviour, shape your priorities and define what you might want  from the future. Having a good understanding of your skills, values, strengths, and motivations will help you understand your purpose and lead to better informed career decisions.   

Start by completing the motivations questionnaire found in Handshake to begin to prioritise some of your wants.

Your ability to identify both your skills and strengths will help you understand what you might enjoy from a career and what qualities you can bring to the workplace. 

Consider how to identify your skills with Sarah Blunt, Employability and Careers Consultant, by watching this short video 

Now why not take time to audit your own skills. Download the Traffic Light Skills Audit Document to help you to identify and evaluate your key employability skills. You may also find this list of skills with definitions useful. 

The Career Zone run over twenty personal and professional development workshops and webinars to help you develop your skills. You can attend these as stand-alone sessions or as part of the Exeter Award and Exeter Leaders Award. Sign up here for one of these sessions.

You may also wish to visit our Developing your skills page.

“Unlike skills which can be learnt, your strengths are things you are good at AND enjoy” 

When we use our strengths, we are more productive, perform better, and are more engaged in what we are doing. By identifying our strengths, we can identify opportunities that require those attributes and so give us enjoyment in what we do. 

Here are 4 four tips to help you identify your strengths:  

• Get feedback. Seek out opinions from friends and trusted colleagues. Talk to people who know you well, what do they feel your strengths are? Hearing how others perceive you can be a great confidence booster.
• Identify your interests. When you enjoy something, it is often easier to develop strengths in that area. Think about what you most enjoy doing and what strengths you use in that activity.
• Understand when you are most productive. During your day, make a note of how long different tasks take and how productive you are within that time. If it feels like time is passing quickly and you achieve a lot in a short amount of time, you are likely to be using your strengths. Make a list of when you feel the most focused.
• Seek out new experiences. By trying new experiences, you can broaden your awareness of your strengths. Activities, hobbies or even volunteering can help you discover what you like, don’t like and where you want to put your efforts. 

Why not try  an online Strength profile Free Strengths Test | Strengths Profile or attend our next ‘Discover your strengths to find a job that suits you’ workshop to learn more about what your identified strengths could mean for you. In this session you will identify your personal strengths and learn how to leverage them in job applications and interviews. Through engaging activities, you'll gain confidence in exploring career options that align with your strengths and values. For the latest events, please check Handshake

Exploring our values can sometimes give a clearer sense of what might direct us in our future work. Values are the things that you believe are important in the way you live and work. 

This video will help you to work out your top 3 personal values  

Now without judgement or censoring yourself ask, what do you want to make better from the work you do? What do you care about that is bigger than you and what impact would you like to make? To help you reflect on this further read our ‘guide to uncovering your values’. Or continue below to find more inspiration.

Look at how you like to spend your time or try new things. Take time to reflect on why these things are important to you with the help of our short guide.

Participation in volunteering, clubs, societies, employability schemes, and other on campus opportunities can allow you to try out new things and gain transferable skills. It’s a great way to discover the things you do and don’t enjoy, to identify your strengths and broaden your interests. 

Curiosity and imaging ideas will also bring new thoughts and ways of working to mind. In this blog post 8 surprising sources of careers inspiration - Career Zone you are encouraged to start thinking in creative ways to explore the things that bring you joy.