{"id":19617,"date":"2018-11-27T09:00:58","date_gmt":"2018-11-27T09:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.xello.world\/blog\/career-planning-how-young-is-too-young\/"},"modified":"2025-05-21T14:03:33","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T19:03:33","slug":"career-planning-how-young-is-too-young","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.xello.world\/en-ca\/resources\/blog-posts\/career-planning-how-young-is-too-young\/","title":{"rendered":"Career Planning: How Young Is Too Young to Start?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s never too early to begin thinking about the future and start career planning… but not everyone agrees.<\/h2>\n

There are conflicting viewpoints about the best time to introduce the concept of career development to students. Here\u2019s how one Xello staffer (a.k.a. a \u201cXellion\u201d) discovered the benefits of starting the career planning process early \u2013 by testing our tools with his 8-year-old.
\nEvan Hann wants to save the world. Preferably while wearing a cape and zipping around under the cover of darkness. Since before he can remember, he\u2019s been nurturing the dream of becoming a ninja.
\n\u201cHe may be only 8 years old, but Evan talks about becoming a ninja all the time. His idea of a ninja is helping people while performing cool kicks and flips,\u201d said his dad Jarrod.
\nAs the VP of Sales for Xello, an online career planning program, Jarrod is accustomed to using the tool for students starting in middle school. It hadn\u2019t occurred to him to introduce the concept future readiness to his third grader. But when Evan karate chopped his way into the room one Sunday afternoon while Jarrod was working, a light bulb switched on\u2014and his answer to the inevitable, \u201cWhat\u2019re you doing, Dad?\u201d was honest.
\n\u201cI\u2019m helping kids discover their future job.\u201d Curious, Evan hopped on Jarrod\u2019s lap and the two of them took a tour of Xello, including its extensive list of careers.<\/p>\n

Read ACTE Whitepaper: Career Development in the Early Grades\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/h2>\n

\u201cI already know what I want to do. I\u2019m going to be a ninja. Is that on the list?\u201d asked Evan.
\nWhen they\u2019d confirmed that ninja wasn\u2019t a standard career, Jarrod suggested they try \u2018martial arts instructor\u2019. He explained that, while they\u2019re not exactly ninjas, they do a lot of the same work Evan was drawn to. A profile for the career popped up depicting a male and a female martial arts instructor doing high kicks and Evan\u2019s eyes lit up. He began reading the description out loud.
\n\u201cYeah! I\u2019m going to be a martial arts instructor when I grow up,\u201d he confirmed when finished.
\nDeciding to extend the experiment a little further, Jarrod pointed out the part of the profile that indicated a martial arts instructor makes between $15,000 and $40,000 a year. He noted to Evan that for the first few years he\u2019d probably make the low end of the range.
\n\u201cOf course, he thought $10,000\/year was fantastic. Then I showed him a few other jobs that make more money. The first one I pulled up was a doctor, who makes $66,000 to $200,000 a year. His reaction was immediate, \u2018I\u2019ll be a doctor during the week and a martial arts instructor on the weekends!\u2019\u201d
\n\u201cGiving him the language and authoritative information allowed him to retain his identity and his dreams but made them more realistic,\u201d said Jarrod. And while he doesn’t necessarily know yet how well a Doctor matches with his skills or interests, for now Evan proudly gushes about his dream of becoming a martial arts instructor\u2014and a doctor.
\nAs Jarrod and Evan\u2019s story demonstrates, even looking at a very small part of Xello — its career exploration module — there are distinct benefits to introducing future readiness planning to children in primary grades. Access to a future readiness and planning platform that can grow with them equips children with the skills, knowledge and attitudes that become the building blocks of meaningful life and career development. Here are just some of the benefits of starting early.<\/p>\n

Encourages Self-Awareness<\/h3>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s plenty of research that suggests that the number one attribute to success, far more potent than intelligence or work ethic, is self-awareness,\u201d said Jarrod. \u201cThe earlier you can develop self-awareness the further ahead you are in being able to make better decisions for yourself.\u201d
\nWhile kids like Evan are positive about their passions and aptitude, many other children aren\u2019t so sure. Most online career planning platforms offer personality tests that help students explore careers that suit them. In Xello, for instance, once students have completed their personality and learning styles assessments, primary and secondary competencies become associated with each career. This provides even young students with a strong understanding of careers that are a good match, as well as what kind of work they may not enjoy as much.
\nWith a personalized account, their career planning profile can grow with them as they develop new interests and discard others. They can plot their passions and develop a keen sense of who they are\u2014and who they\u2019re becoming\u2014as they mature into higher grades.<\/p>\n

Develops Financial Literacy and Other Real-World Skills<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s one thing to dream of being a ninja\u2014and quite another to understand the real-life impact of a financially unstable career. By introducing the concept of salary, work\/life balance, the physical demands associated with specific careers and the type of soft skills (communications, relationship building) required, kids begin to understand the bigger picture. Even 8-year-old Evan understood that a lower salary would compromise his ability to \u201cbuy a car, house, and food.\u201d
\nOnline career exploration and planning tools can provide a window into what it\u2019s like to do specific jobs, including \u201cday-in-the-life\u201d accounts from real people, a description of typical workplace conditions and inside information like whether they\u2019re on their feet all day, work in teams or alone. This realism empowers kids to create career goals that fit with the kind of future they envision for themselves. They understand what it takes to earn the lifestyle they\u2019re after. They\u2019ll also learn what education and training they\u2019ll need to pursue, which can help motivate them to dig into the subjects that are important to their futures.<\/p>\n

Helps Promote Healthy Social and Emotional Learning<\/h3>\n

Giving young students the opportunity to reflect on their passions and aptitudes\u2014and how they relate to their future\u2014contributes significantly to social and emotional learning, including:<\/p>\n