Lesson 1: Your professional profile – Learning to turn your personal interests into professional opportunities.

Employability in a digital world
Introduction:
The number of jobs advertised digitally varies depending on the country and industry. However, it is safe to say that a significant percentage of job postings are now advertised digitally on various platforms such as job boards, company websites, and social media.

Knowing how to access these job postings in a digital way is important because it increases accessibility, provides a wider range of job opportunities, saves time, and makes the job search more efficient. As well, it gives proof of digital competences which will also be needed to carry out the job in question.

Considering your employability in a digital world is important for several reasons:

• Increased competition: As technology advances, more jobs are becoming automated, leading to increased competition for the remaining jobs. A strong digital presence can help you stand out in a crowded job market.

• Employer research: Many employers now conduct online research on job candidates before making hiring decisions. Ensuring that your digital presence is professional and aligned with your personal brand can increase your chances of being hired.

• Professional development: Developing a strong digital presence can help you showcase your skills and expertise, which can lead to new professional opportunities and career advancement.

• Networking: Building a strong digital network can provide you with access to industry leaders, potential employers, and like-minded professionals, which can lead to new job opportunities.

In summary, considering your employability in a digital world is important because it can increase your chances of being hired, advance your career, and provide you with new networking opportunities.

In order to work on this, we should plan to succeed! In the following lessons we will outline steps ns exercises you can carry out in order to be able to successfully digitalize your job search or venture! 

 Introduction:

Developing a professional profile where you relate your personal interests into professional opportunities means leveraging your personal interests and hobbies to create a unique and compelling professional brand. By showcasing your personal interests, you can demonstrate your passion, creativity, and unique perspective to potential employers or clients. For example, if you’re passionate about photography, you can use that interest to pursue a career in graphic design or social media management, or you can even start your own photography business.

Developing a professional profile that highlights your personal interests requires a strategic approach. It involves identifying your personal strengths and interests, researching career opportunities that align with those interests, and then creating a professional brand that showcases your unique perspective and talents. This can include creating a personal website or social media accounts that highlight your work, attending industry events or conferences to network and learn more about potential opportunities, and collaborating with other professionals in your field to build your reputation and credibility.

Let´s break these down into a step-by step how-to guide for you to follow in order to be able to build your profile!

Know your potential: SWOT analysis

A personal SWOT analysis is a self-evaluation tool used to identify your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT). It’s a helpful exercise to gain insight into your professional profile, understand your unique abilities and areas for improvement, and identify potential career opportunities.

Here’s how you can conduct a personal SWOT analysis:

Identify your strengths: List down your personal strengths, skills, and abilities that you possess. Think about what you are good at, what you enjoy doing, and what others have recognized as your strengths.

Determine your weaknesses: Identify areas where you struggle or need improvement. This could be a lack of certain skills, personality traits that you want to improve, or anything else that holds you back.

Look for opportunities: Identify any external opportunities that could help you grow professionally. This could include networking events, job openings, training courses, or anything else that could help you advance in your career.

Identify potential threats: Consider any external factors that could potentially harm your career growth. This could include competition, technological changes, economic factors, or anything else that could potentially affect your professional goals.

Personal Interest Test:

Developing a personal interest test can help you explore your passions, values, and interests. To create a personal interest test, start by brainstorming topics that interest you, such as music, travel, art, science, sports, etc. Next, develop questions that explore your interest level for each category. Establish a rating system that allows you to quantify your level of interest in each category, and test the questions with a small group of friends or family to refine and revise them. Once you’ve completed the test, analyze the results to identify patterns and trends, which can help you better understand your interests and make more informed decisions about your career, hobbies, and other activities.

It’s important to remember that a personal interest test is just one tool for exploring your interests. To gain a deeper understanding of your passions, engage in self-reflection, try new activities, and seek out experiences that challenge you and expand your interests. Use the personal interest test as a guide to help you identify potential career paths or hobbies, but don’t limit yourself to only those activities. Allow your interests to evolve and change over time as you continue to learn and grow.

Vocational Guidance and Aptitude Tests:

CHASIDE (Cuestionario de Habilidades y Aptitudes para la Selección y Desarrollo de Ejecutivos / Skills and Aptitudes Questionnaire for the Selection and Development of Executives), which is a professional vocational guidance test developed in Spain. It is designed to help individuals identify their personal and professional strengths and weaknesses, and provide guidance on potential career paths that align with their abilities and interests.

The test consists of various sections that assess different areas, including verbal and numerical reasoning, creativity, leadership skills, and emotional intelligence. The results provide a detailed report on the individual’s skills, abilities, and personality traits, as well as recommendations for potential career paths and development areas to focus on.

CHASIDE is widely used in Spain by companies and individuals seeking professional guidance and career development support. It is often administered by psychologists or career counselors, and the results are used to inform career coaching and training programs. Due to this very specific geographical test