Indentify past accomplishments

We all have past accomplishments, whether it includes past work history or through other experiences. Reflecting on these accomplishment gives us a sense of where we've been - and where we'd like to go. This exercise is important because it will help you do the following things:

• explore career options
• write resumes
• write cover letters
• fill out job applications

Be flexible about how you look at your career. Try one of the following:

• Make a list of all your important career events. Group them by categories like tasks, responsibilities, awards, and accomplishments.
• Think in chronological order taking the most recent job you had and work backward. Identify tasks, responsibilities, awards, and accomplishments for each job.
• Use your own strategy to identify important career events.

Career events don’t need to be major milestones. And they should include alternative work experiences (for example, volunteering, internships, freelance) you've had. Anything that shows that you are improving your skills will be useful as your pursue opportunities in the future.