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Several years ago, when I was new to the industry, I walked into a career fair and met the an associate director of Career Services at a university. After I introduced myself, she said, “It seems that you do not have direct experience in career advising.” I paused. I did not defend myself by saying that career advising had been part of my job responsibilities, but it had never been my official title.
I left the career fair with self-doubt.
After gaining more experience in career advising, I have critically reflected on that moment and on how career advising can be best practised.
Do we really see what people already have?
People often say that you do not have experience in X, Y and Z fields, especially when advising young professionals or people who experience career transitions. This reminded me of my younger self years ago and made me question: Do we really focus on people’s strengths and what they already have?
In practice, shifting from weaknesses to strengths can begin with changing the questions we ask:
- What do you already have, and how can we build from there?
- Acknowledge that jobseekers already have relevant skills within themselves instead of questioning what they lack.
When networking becomes the answer to everything
As a career advisor and also an advisee (because career advisors are also job seekers), I often hear, “Expand your network.” Networking can help people discover opportunities and build relationships. The problem is when career advice makes it sound like networking is the solution to almost every job-search problem. It also made me question whether people with better resources or access to professional platforms naturally have more networking opportunities. When we place so much emphasis on networking, are we unintentionally reinforcing the disparities between people? Are we focusing too much on who people know instead of what they know and what they can do?
To address this, I suggest:
- Instead of directly recommending networking, ask whether it meets the person’s goal: What are you hoping networking will help you accomplish? Is networking the most useful strategy for this particular goal? Networking should complement, rather than replace, other career development strategies.
- Reflect on whether we are placing too much emphasis on networking without first understanding the individuals.
- Reflect on whether we are discouraging people who have fewer resources or less access to professional networks. What can we do to reduce this disparity and make networking opportunities more accessible?
What we overlook beyond the title
In today’s competitive job market, it is easy to focus on what candidates are missing – the years of experience they do not have, the skills they have not yet developed or the titles they have not held. However, we may overlook what they already have within themselves. When we place too much importance on job titles or professional platforms, we could also create pressure for candidates to exaggerate or misrepresent their titles simply to meet employers’ expectations.
To address this, I suggest:
- Encourage individuals to critically consider the pros and cons of misrepresenting their titles.
- Debunk the applicant tracking system (ATS) myth: Many job seekers believe that an ATS automatically screen resumes based on keyword matches. It is important to clarify that an ATS is primarily a searchable database, and humans determine the screening criteria. This misconception that an ATS automatically filters candidates based on keywords may pressure job seekers to change or exaggerate their job titles and responsibilities to match the language of a job description.
Are they really our “clients”?
In today’s career advising practice, we also often refer to the people who seek our support as “clients.” I also encourage career professionals to rethink the use of this word. It may unintentionally create a sense of power distance – positioning the professional as the authority, or the other person as the one who holds the power, depending on how you think about it. Career advising should be developmental, where both parties share equal power and accountability. To address this, I suggest:
- Rethink the word “client.” Consider whether the language we use reflects the collaborative relationship we want to create.
- Position the “client” as a partner. Both parties share responsibility and accountability for action plans.
Several years have passed since that career fair, but I still remember how quickly one comment made me question my own experience. Today, as a career advisor, I see that moment differently. I did have career advising experience; I simply did not have the title that someone expected to see.
I hope these insights encourage career professionals to reflect not only on how we advise others, but also on how we understand our own careers.
