With the increasing pressure to perform in all spheres of activity, individuals are now experiencing constant stress, even as they struggle to discharge their duties at the workplace. Consequently, certified career counsellors are the professionals they often turn to for help and guidance to students, grappling with the issues they face. Therefore, here is an article on the key values of skilled career counsellors.
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A couple of sessions with a professional career counsellor can make a huge difference to the attitude, morale, and motivation level of the stressed-out employee and help him/her make a positive contribution at the workplace. So how do certified career counsellors bring about this change? What qualities of head and heart do they need to work their magic with people who seek their guidance at all stages through their career from selecting the right career, making a mid-career change, helping with a career switch, helping after a job loss, helping deal with a difficult boss, etc.
Here are some of the attributes and values that Professional career counsellors need to possess and cultivate for success in the profession.
Communication Skills
Excellent communication skills rank absolutely at the top of the ‘must-have’ skills for counsellors. While to a certain extent these can be gained at graduate school and can be further developed during the course of practice, they do need to have certain basic communication skills to start with. They also need to possess a natural ability to listen and explain their ideas and thoughts to others.
Acceptance
This is an attribute that all professionals across the counseling spectrum and related roles should have. The acceptance which also includes being nonjudgmental requires that professionals must be able to relate to the client with an open, nonjudgmental attitude. They should be able to accept the client for their status and their current situation. They further need to convey acceptance to their clients with understanding and warmth.
Discretion
Certified career counsellors must be able to win the trust of their clients and one of the best ways to do this is to maintain the confidentiality of their clients. The ability to listen to their clients makes for effective building rapport and eases the way to the best advice.
Empathy
To be able to help clients with their problems, a professional career counsellor needs to have empathy which may be seen as the ability to feel what the other person is feeling. When they have empathy counselors are better able to imagine their client’s fears, anxiety, and concerns and chart out a way ahead for them. Even if the counselor does not agree with the perspective presented by the client, counselors still need to be able to understand how it feels to them so as to be able to address their issues effectively.
Good Listener
For effective counseling, Certified Career counselors must have good listening skills. This means the best career counselor must not only listen to what the client is saying but be able to also go beyond what is being spoken. The counselor should be able to pick up the implications of what is being said, and also why it is being said. They should also be able to meaningfully relate it to the context of the client. They should also be able to pick up the clues from “between the lines,” for what is left unsaid by the client. This is because clients are known to exclude knowingly or unknowingly much that the professional career counsellor needs to know. They should be able to understand what is not said as clearly as what is said out loud.
The counselor needs to not only listen to what is being said but how it is said and why it is being said. The content, delivery, and context need to be also factored in to make complete sense of the situation . Effective listening in a counselor is a cultivated skill.
Problem-Solving Skills
It is not up to the counselor to solve the clients’ problems, but they need to be very good at solving problems in order to be able to assist their clients. Specifically, they need to be able to identify and bring about changes to negative patterns of thought and other harmful behaviors that the problems might be set in.
Interpersonal Skills
Counselors need to have a solid set of skills in order to quickly establish rapport with clients as also to create strong interpersonal relationships. They should be able to focus on the client’s problems and be able to nurture trust. It is also important that they are able to focus on the client fully and that they are not distracted by their own problems or concerns during a session.
Flexibility
Flexibility requires the ability on part of the counselor to make changes in their approach to the client’s problems when it is required to do so. Rigid adherence to a line of treatment will prove counter-productive when a different approach is required. The ability to change course and adopt a different approach to the problem ranks among one of the most important attributes of a professional counselor.
Multicultural Competency
Career counselors need to exhibit multicultural competency and implement a multicultural worldview. With multicultural competency counselors are better able to relate to and understand their clients irrespective of their background as regards race, religion, income, etc.
Interest In Helping People
A good career counselor should possess the patience and energy to give a sympathetic hearing to clients’ problems at all times. They should be able to stay focused on what the clients have to say. It may be noted that career counseling is about having a constant commitment to enabling human-to-human connection and striving to bring about a change for the better. Counselors need to cultivate a non-reactive frame of mind and learn to differentiate between evaluation and observation. This will go a long way in making precise assessments and creating a relational connection with the client.
Lastly, a counsellor should not only be accessible to their clients in order to gain their trust but also needs to be empathetic and genuine as well when communicating and listening to the clients. The finest Certified career counsellor should be proficient at developing a genuine sympathetic connection with every client so that the process of counseling can move forward and the client-counselor relationship can become effective and stronger.
Some of the Best Counsellors in india
Surabhi Dewra
Surabhi Dewra is one of the leading Indian women entrepreneurs. She has been featured amongst the top 25 powerful women in India and has received a lot of other awards including the recent ‘50 Fabulous Global Edutech Leader’ award & 40 Under 40 Education Leader award by Business World .
Surabhi makes regular appearances on national and international TV and Print media to discuss Career, Education, Women in Leadership and Economy related topics. She is on the panel of various Government of India Ministry bodies to setup policy framework around Career Guidance and Counselling in the country.
Pranav Bhatia
14 Years of Experience, Expertise in Working Professional Counselling
Pranav Bhatia is a Certified Master Career Guide
Pranav Bhatia is a serial Entrepreneur and the Founder of Stirring Minds Ventures Inc. Pranav Bhatia has been involed with startups for over a decade now, having buit multiple edu-tech startups himself, many of which he took to successful exits. He now invents his time and money on his incubate ventures, working on developing the startup and the blockchain ecosystem. Getting his entrepreneurial know-how touch more horizons, in 2010 he also took over a tech services company from a UK based group, that now provides technology services to startups, to a lot of indian and valley based startups.
Become A Master With Careerguide
The “Career Counsellor Certification Course” from CareerGuide is a 50+ hour, self-paced, lifetime access online course for career counsellor certification. This will assist in giving you curriculum with the use of many Case Studies, Scenarios, FAQs, and Quizzes. Everything you need to become a successful career counsellor is in the curriculum. This course consists of lessons that help to develop your skills and become a master career guide.
FAQ's on Key values of skilled career counsellors
Q: What are the key values of skilled career counselors?
A: Skilled career counselors possess certain key values that contribute to their effectiveness in helping individuals with their career development. Here are some frequently asked questions about the key values of skilled career counselors:
Q: What is the importance of empathy in career counseling?
A: Empathy is crucial in career counseling as it allows counselors to understand and connect with their clients on an emotional level. It helps counselors create a safe and supportive environment, build trust, and provide personalized guidance based on the unique needs and challenges of each individual.
Q: Why is ethical practice important for career counselors?
A: Ethical practice is essential for career counselors as it ensures that they adhere to professional standards and guidelines. It involves maintaining confidentiality, respecting clients’ autonomy and diversity, avoiding conflicts of interest, and providing unbiased and objective guidance. Ethical practice establishes trust and credibility in the counseling relationship.
Q: How does integrity contribute to the effectiveness of career counselors?
A: Integrity is a fundamental value for career counselors as it encompasses honesty, transparency, and adherence to professional ethics. Counselors with integrity demonstrate sincerity and reliability in their interactions, actions, and advice. This fosters a sense of authenticity and trust between the counselor and the client.
