Your English teacher was right -- writing is good for you

Articulating thoughts hasn't always been a strong point of mine.  After all, I'm a guy; we're trained to respond monosyllabically.  In the past, if I was asked about my feelings on a topic other than sports, I would freeze up completely.  This became a problem because I didn't even know what I was thinking or feeling.  It has taken me years to learn to express my true thoughts.  Fortunately I discovered writing as a method of expression.

Why Writing?
First we have to look at the difference between thinking, speaking, and writing.  When we think, we generally work in the abstract.  I don't know about you, but I don't necessarily have a dialogue constantly running through my mind; more like concepts, feelings, images, or the occasional song.

Speaking is more concrete; we are forced to put our thoughts into a definite form.  That's why talking with a friend can be so beneficial – it makes us organize the ideas in our head into expressable terms.  The big drawback to speaking is that it's a temporary form.  Once we say something, it's gone, and the only record of it is in our memory.  Some of the people who speak the most never seem to listen to what they say (don't believe me?  Just look at political commentators).

Writing, on the other hand, still expresses our thoughts, but records them in a form that we can examine afterward.  Once we have put our ideas on paper, they can be analyzed, revised, shared, or thrown away.  Writing also takes more time and effort than thinking or speaking, encouraging more complete exploration of your thoughts and feelings.

So what are the implications for career discovery?  I'll explain some specific techniques later, but for now, try this –  write down how you feel about future career prospects.  Keep writing for five minutes.  I've used this method many times on myself; how does it work for you?

What are my motivations for blogging?

I have my own reasons for creating this blog. One of the most important is that I really do want to help people. I'm going into academic advising because I know I can make a difference in people's lives. I've learned so many things in the past year and a half, and I plan to spend the rest of my career sharing that knowledge with others. I figure I might as well get started now, even if I don't have a full-time job advising at the moment.

Which leads me to the second reason. Creating this blog is part of the Paco Master Plan (more on that later). I've been unofficially advising my students for the past 6 years, but I don't have much physical evidence to show for it. This blog gives me a chance to demonstrate to any advising offices out there that I do have the knowledge and background necessary to be an effective advisor. After I have a suitable number of articles written, I plan to network with other advising blogs, especially with ones in the Pacific Northwest. If this blog gets to the right people, they may approach me when hiring time comes around. If they don't, I still have my first reason for blogging, which is still most important.

My third reason deals with the Paco Master Plan as well. It can be easy to dream about the future, but not specify exactly how or when I will accomplish my goals. Blogs are an interesting goal-setting device. By putting my exact plans and dates into my blog, it's as if the entire world is holding me accountable. I know that this is not exactly true, that most people could care less whether I do or don't follow through with my goals, but it is a powerful psychological motivator. How many personal weight-loss blogs are there? Plenty. Because people feel that others are watching. If it works for them, I can definitely try it myself.

And the last reason is purely personal. I want a record of this period of my life. I'm composing each of my messages offline and saving them, so that some day in the future, I'll be able to look back and see who I was. This may be of interest to me and to my family, and if anyone else cares, great. If not, I've still got it for myself.

Anyway, that's why I've decided to dedicate part of my time to blogging. Hey, I can think of a lot of other less-effective ways to spend my time!

What's the purpose of this blog?

This blog is a record of my own experience figuring out my life and looking for a job. I will address a number of topics, including:

• Job hunting methods that go beyond simply sending out resumes
• Ways to discover what you want to do with your life
• Making and following through with goals for your future
• Reviews of online and printed resources to help with the above topics
• My experience following my own advice

I have a specific audience in mind for this blog. If you fit into any of the following categories, you may want to keep reading:

• The millions out there who are unemployed or underemployed and who would like tips on finding a new job.
• Recent college graduates who spent all that time, effort, and money and who are now running into barriers getting past that first employment hurdle.
• Anyone who suddenly finds themselves with no direction for their future and would like help figuring it out.
• Undecided college students who need to pick a major, but don't know what they want to do.
• Potential future employers who'd like to know more about me before making hiring decisions (hope hope).
• Other advisors who get a kick out of reading advising blogs.

No matter who you are or why you're here, welcome!