Can you help your Daughter fulfill her career dreams?

If she can dream it, she can become it. So can you really help your Daughter fulfill her career dreams? And if you could where would you start, if you knew how to start what tools and resources would you need to provide to her in order to give her good guidance?

Let me begin by saying this “yes you can help her fulfill her career dream” you only have to see the dream with her and believe it’s possible just as she does. 
More often than not we are at a loss when our daughters approach us with their desires for the future. We make small claims when our children are toddlers that they can be anything they want to be when they grow up but then when they reach a more mature age we tend to change direction and try to guide them to what we consider more suitable career choices. We steer them towards college and tell them to make choices not on dreams or desires but based on salary trends or current predictions in the job market. The truth is we tend to leave the career development in the hands of school counselors or career counselors who are more often than not complete strangers to our children. This is because we have confidence that others are better trained to guide our children on a career choice, this could not be farther from the truth.

No one, let me repeat, no one is better trained to give guidance about your daughters future than you are. You are the one who watched her play in the sandbox with a dump truck for hours in the driveway, you are the one who observed her playing nurse on the dolls she loved and cherished, you are the one who knows her talents and the skills she possesses and you, and only you, know how she uses her instinct. So do not settle for others doing the guidance for you when of course you can help your Daughter fulfill her career dreams; all you need is the capacity to share her dream and the desire to see the possibilities. Many women enter careers that they later learn are not suited to their personalities or their abilities. The fact is far too many young women enter college with only a vague idea about their career choices or about themselves and the types of careers available that might match their interests. We have not helped them focus on their dreams and the art of the possible until it is too late and they no longer see the dreams they had as young girls.

The desire to see infinite possibilities is the key and it is significant in leading your Daughter down the path to her dreams and into the career of her choice. The objective is not to help your Daughter prepare for a career but help her prepare for the right career. 
Social thinkers have always believed that being a strong support is the key to helping others fulfill their goals. You got it! Dreams are nothing more than a series of steps heading to an end result that we can equate to goal driven outcomes. So I say this "see her vision, share her vision and become an investor in her vision, the result will be extraordinary."
Below is a quip from the AT&T Parent Project.

AT&T Parent Project
Career Development Course
Step One: TEACH YOUR CHILD TO DREAM.
The first step of career development is dreaming. Children should dream about what they want to be and do as adults. They may want to be a detective, doctor, or secret agent. It doesn’t matter what these dreams are; they are all important. As parents, we need to know about these dreams and encourage our children to hold onto them. Dreams are children’s guiding stars. We must get our children to dream high, not low! This step will show you how to get your child not to settle for the bronze, but rather to go for the gold!
Step Two: AWAKEN YOUR CHILD’S INTERESTS.
Career satisfaction is not always determined by how much money you make. To be truly happy in a career, you must like what you do. This step will help you awaken and identify your child’s interests and connect them to appropriate careers. Many times we dream about things that would not really make us happy! Your child’s interests can bring his dreams down to earth.
Step Three: ASSESS YOUR CHILD’S PERSONALITY.
This step links you to several fun personality tests that your child will enjoy taking. These are really not “tests” since there are no right or wrong answers. But they will enable him to discover his attitudes about the world, people, and work. Your child’s personality can serve as a lens by which to explore the world of careers.
For more on this project go to:
http://www.takestockinchildren.org/pdf/resources-parents-careerplanning.pdf

Lets Dream,

Toni