Career Development and Indecision

One of the ironies in life, is when you are studying something and you see real life in practice. Many times the two do not go together. There is the theoretical aspect of learning and the applied aspect of learning/doing.  Relevant research is applied to both.  This week, I have been working with a seventeen year old high achiever. She has surpassed all the goals and is ready to embark upon which college and which career choice to make for her future. After working with this student, I found that she really does not know what she would like to do in the future. For her, the future seems dismal after spending so much time getting ready for class and tests and such… and now to decided that this is what she must do in the future for college she has found that she is very burnt out. 
Her indecision stems from being pushed by her parents to be number one in her class.  Her giftedness is a crutch with which she has had to hide behind in order not to have friends or to go out to do things with others, since she is painfully shy.  There was an incident when she was eleven where she found that she was the center of attention and this did not go over well with her.  She has had teacher point out her continual brilliance in the classroom setting.
All of this accumulation of high expectations has given her a heightened sense of anxiety. It is ironic that a few weeks ago, I studied gifted girls and the methods with which one should counsel the student and parent.  In this case, the parents sensing that something shifted in her junior year have been proactive in being open to discussions and seeking counseling for her which was completely opposite of the case studies that I have researched.

As I stated before, I do believe that career indecision is a sign of transformation in progress. I believe that this indecision is better viewed as an attempt to begin a process of looking at yourself as a total “product” with many different interchangeable parts. We see ourselves sometimes as a whole person and we miss the objective pathology preventing an individual from regrouping. However, when we look at the client and his skills and how these skills can be adapted in various new career settings we begin to help in their process of expanding their career options. I think that if I were looking at the person on the surface I would see only that which he has presented to me, but if I expand and look at the construct the whole that will clarify the parts (p. 366), I can then give the client tools to better explore other career choices. Savickas (1995) focuses on how the individual uses their vocational personality to adapt to a sequence of job changes, while remaining faithful to one self

This research examined the characteristics of gifted females and their tendency to be perfect, within the consideration of integrating a subjective experiences versus a constructivist framework for career development (Maxwell, 2007, p. 207). “Similarly, a development, a constructivist approach to career counseling that attends to the important aspects of identity formation while considering the life space of the individual as the interaction and constellation of crucial life roles and theaters” (p. 212). Within the gifted population, some female gifted students suffer from low self-esteem, depression, loneliness, perfectionism and other self-defeating issues it is important to offer this population ways in which they can overcome these challenges. Which in turn is noted as an important aspect of identify formation during this crucial developmental period. The findings suggest that this population may benefit from a deeper or more holistic approach to career development (p. 208). As noted by Maxwell (2007) 

I would end by saying that not all indecision is bad, but in this case understanding where the client is coming from is essential for me as a clincian.