Six barriers to career dreams – and how to overcome them - Women's Agenda

Six barriers to career dreams – and how to overcome them

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

It’s a common question children are asked. The beauty of the question is that children do not yet anticipate any barriers to their career dreams and aspirations.

With answers such as a doctor, lawyer, astronaut or the Prime Minister, they are not thinking about potential knock-backs, financial hurdles, biases or obstacles that would stop them from achieving their dream. Their focus is purely on the goal.

However, from childhood to the workplace, external and internal barriers stop people from pursuing their career dreams. Women especially can face their own unique set of challenges.

Below are some of the main barriers that cause women to talk themselves out of pursuing their career dreams, with some suggestions on how to overcome these hurdles.

1. A fixed mindset

The greatest barrier to reaching your career dreams can be your very own mindset.

A “growth mindset” is one that’s resilient, that can help you overcome set-backs, failures or barriers and achieve your career dreams. Meanwhile, a “fixed mindset” can put up major barriers to career success, having people believe their talent or intelligence are fixed traits, not skills that can be developed. Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck says they’re wrong and achieving your goals can be as simple as changing your mind.

As a pioneer of flexible study in the Australian market, Charles Sturt University (CSU) is encouraging people to embrace a growth mindset by thinking again about study. If you never went to university or you’re wondering how you can fit study in your life with the kids, CSU’s expertise is in breaking down ‘fixed-mindset’ barriers and providing the support and flexibility needed to make study a reality.

“We guide prospective students through their return to study every day.  We’ve been doing this for such a long time and we have so many success stories to share that we are able to make you see the possibilities,” says Jennifer Galloway, Senior Manager, CSU.

2. Affordability

Financial obligations such as mortgages, bills or taxes can restrain us from pursuing career goals. Following a dream of setting up a new business or studying to change profession is a financial risk many people feel they can’t take.

But by researching the many grants, offers and assistance that government and universities offer, this financial barrier can often be overcome.

CSU offers its own such assistance, providing more than $1 million in scholarship assistance to 300+ students every year, and connecting students to a further $2 million in assistance. This year, CSU is offering a study grant competition as part of its Think Again campaign, with $30,000 on offer to go towards one of 300 online courses.

3. Not setting smart goals

Not knowing where to start on the path to a career dream can leave people stuck. On her Linkedin blog Dr Julie Connor, author of Dreams to Actions Trailblazer’s Guide, argues that while it’s possible to pursue your dreams while balancing a family, job and other responsibilities – the key to success is getting started by setting SMART goals.

A SMART goal is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound. Dr Connor says that by simply writing down your goals it packs your passion with power and sets the dream-to-action process onto a course headed towards success. 

4. Fear of failure

In her well-known book, Lean In, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg says the greatest barrier to women achieving career goals is fear. As Sandberg writes: “Fear is at the root of so many of the barriers that women face. Fear of not being liked. Fear of making the wrong choice. Fear of drawing negative attention… And the holy trinity of fear: the fear of being a bad mother/ wife/ daughter… Without fear, women can pursue professional success and personal fulfillment – and freely choose one, or the other, or both.”

Overcoming fear is the key to achieving career success and dreams. And one of the key steps to overcoming fear is by taking action. Taking that initial leap is the most important part of any career path. Whether it’s to enrol in a course, start writing or simply picking up the phone, if you make a move you’ll jumpstart your motivation.

5. Balancing family and career

Women are still performing the majority of domestic and childcare responsibilities in the home, even when there are two spouses working full-time. Whilst pursuing career dreams can be tough, it’s not impossible.

CSU has specifically sought to address some of the challenges that hold women back from pursuing their career dreams, providing the flexibility to study from home, at a time that suits them and fits around their family’s needs.

6. The dream itself as a barrier

Holding on to a childhood dream for the sake of it could be a barrier in itself. As Jacquelyn Smith writes in Business Insider, “Someone once told me to follow my childhood dreams and it was terrible career advice.” She says that holding on to a childhood dream of being an architect was making her miserable. It was only when she realised that the dream had long since faded and it was not what she wanted as an adult, that she could move on to pursuing what she really wanted.

Sometimes we feel that we are letting down our younger selves – so it’s important to stop and ask yourself the question, is this still what I want? Is this still my dream?” If the answer is “no,” move on and start chasing a new one.

Do you think your career dreams are out of reach?  Think again by exploring more than 300 courses offered online at CSU or enter CSU’s competition. You could win a $30,000 study grant to study any online course with CSU.

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