The journey of iterating not only my research question but also my career plans continues to be a journey of being subject to many confusions before getting further clarity. Throughout this journey of iterations, the constant reminder from MA Applied Imagnation’s faculty regarding focusing on the process more than the outcome was very helpful and much needed.
Rather than focusing on the industry that I eventually want to contribute in, I started thinking about what skills will make me a better fit for contributing to the cultural/handicraft industry in Pakistan in the long term. This made me ask myself questions that are answered in the visual below:
- What type of roles can I see myself professionally pursuing?
- What are my areas of competency versus my areas of excellence? I have grouped these two together for now as I am still reflecting on the answer to this question.
- What is it that I do not like to do and what is it that I do not like to do but would love to improve on?
While desk work is something that I do not want to do a lot of (but am competent at), the areas mentioned in bold are areas that I am not competent at but am willing to somewhat improve on. I believe this exercise is very helpful so I can figure out what skills I want to develop and how I can potentially do so through my project for this degree. This is why I believe it is useful to share this in a blog post.
Right now, my priority is to develop a transferrable skillset, irrespective of the industry where I begin my career in. I would rather be doing a role that allows me to grow (being impartial towards the industry) than working in a role that I do not enjoy in my industry of choice. Ideally, and perhaps eventually, I might be doing what I love in the sector that I care about!
