What you do over the course of a school year, work days and during the summer can have significant impact on your next step—and your future. You’ve probably heard the expression ‘you learn something new everyday’. Well, it’s true. Just think, each class you take, activity you participate in, job you do, event that occurs, etc. offers a world of knowledge for the taking.

For instance, say that you just baked a cake, put a kid’s bike together, finished your calculus homework or delivered a client presentation. What did you learn? What skills did you use? At minimum, you may have learned how to read and follow instructions. Maybe you learned that you pay close attention to details and follow through well. Or you solved a problem creatively. Or you learned a new way to do something. You may have learned that you enjoyed yourself. Or, maybe you found out that you never want to do that task again.

What skills you choose to recognize, acquire, discard, use or improve upon is ENTIRELY up to you and the life/career paths you want to take.

Similarly with knowledge, we certainly can’t take every bit of information out there into consideration. Who has time for that? Think about how much information is thrown at you each day without you reaching for it: commercials, magazine ads, unsolicited flyers and emails. Think about all the conversations you have with friends, family, teachers, even strangers. Then consider the abundance of information available on the internet.

Some information may not be relevant or interesting, but identifying what is relevant and interesting IS important. It could effect the life/career paths you are considering.

Most people today are searching for ‘job security’. We’re glad to tell you that you can have a distinct advantage over current job marketeers if you DON’T spend a minute on such a fruitless quest. Instead, we suggest you work towards ‘self-security’—and constantly learn about who you are, what you like and don’t like, what your options are and what you want to get out of school, career and life.

Today could be the day you begin (if you haven’t already) committing yourself to learning about YOU, your interests, your skills, your personalities, your values and your goals.

Heady encourages women to take responsibility for their goals by implementing strategies such as taking on assignments that stretch their role and experience to create an opportunity. For example an HR Generalist interested in advancing to a HR Director could learn compensation and benefits by volunteering for assignments that provided opportunities in those areas.

Surely you are not expected to pick a career and stick to it forever. In fact, most people will have 3-5 careers over a lifetime—and 12-15 jobs in between. What you should do is think of your next step, have an idea, and explore it—through classes, activities, jobs, social events, guidance counseling, professional networks, etc. Remember, everything you do, hear, see, touch, smell and taste offer a new opportunity for learning and growth—and happiness according to you.

You can take what you learn and apply it to your next experience. You could even create a plan. And if you start now, you can always be ahead of the game, guiding yourself to a self-designed future. So, GOOD LUCK making every day count for you!