I've decided to change careers. What is the best way to do it? What do you recommend? I recommend you do our Career Choice Program. This program is designed to be the most effective way to sort out your future direction and decide exactly what you will be doing. If that isn't affordable, do our Career Testing Program and use The Pathfinder to work through the other pieces of the puzzle. I had several goals in writing the book. A primary goal was to make Rockport career choice technology available to people who could not afford our programs. But obviously, doing it on your own is not the best way. It is like trying to learn to swim by reading a book. Even the brightest person is best served by having an expert coach who knows all the pitfalls and can guide you through to the point where you know exactly what work you will be doing. I know this recommendation sounds like an ad for us, and I suppose it is. But here at Rockport, we do not say things to sell our programs. What we say always comes from our commitment to people's living a life they love.

I got to the "Wants and Commitments" chapter and got stuck. I have a lot of wants but I'm not really sure I'm ready to commit to anything. How do I deal with this problem? I'm sure you have many definite commitments and requirements. Perhaps you are a little skittish about getting so definite. After all, the C word scares most people to some degree. Start with simple commitments such as, will you work or not work? Will you wear clothes to work or go naked? I know it may sound silly but putting down whatever you are sure of gets the process going, even if the commitment/requirements sound ridiculously obvious. A recent client used this advice and came up with the following:

- I will work.
- I will wear clothes. (He decided he would not wear a tie to work most of the time.)
- I will work in a professional capacity.
- I will not do sales.
- I will work mainly with people within my company rather than with customers or clients.

Once he got going, it got easier. A few weeks later he had put together enough definite pieces of the puzzle to decide on his new career direction.

The values inquiry seems very in-depth. Why did you do it that way? Career development mavens have published all sorts of values exercises. But they don't seem to be much help. Why? Because if you just ask someone about their values, they usually wind up sounding something like the Boy Scout Law. "A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, obedient, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent." It is a combination of ideals, "shoulds," and real values. It is important to sort out your true values, the ones you actually live by, rather than the ones you wished you lived by. That is why we dig in a little deeper in The Pathfinder.

What would you say is the Number One secret to using The Pathfinder? Good question. The entire process of choosing your career is based on your continuing to ask the big, overarching question, "What am I sure will definitely be some of the important components of my future work?" If you keep remembering that this is the real question, you can't go wrong. People tend to forget this and get lost in the details. For example, the only reason understanding that your natural talents or what you are most interested in have any real importance is if getting clear about them helps you to make some definite decisions that help design your career. Otherwise all of it is just some nice-to-know information.

The Number Two secret? Think of the entire process as a way of looking for clues and then deciding how important they are. Take things one step at a time. Don't try to leap to conclusions when you're only on page 95.

I'm a high school senior. My parents gave me The Pathfinder for my birthday. Picking my career seems so daunting. How do I start? The book is not sufficient. Sorry. The book, by itself, is insufficient. The most important first step is to get clear about what careers will fit your talents and personality. Ask your parents to give you our Educational Choice Program if they can afford it, or, at the very least, the Pathfinder Career Testing Program. Then, use the book to dig into all the other important questions.