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Future Unclear?

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About

Hi, my name is Michael  Weddington. I started My Career Story in order to help others address questions I've struggled with on more than one occasion:  Who am I? What am I put on this earth to do? What careers might best align with my values, interests, talents and situation? As a first-generation college student from a blue collar background, I never knew enough to take advantage of available guidance opportunities. It took me a lifetime to figure out what I actually enjoy doing most (this!), although I've learned from a lot of interesting experiences along the way. Now, I would like to help others address the kinds of career, college and life questions I have wrestled with.

 

I can be reached at: 808-280-4973 or you can email me at: weddstory@aol.com.

Let Me Help You Explore, Assess, Develop and Tell Your Career Story

My background includes over 20 years of research at the Masters and Doctoral Levels on how to help students and adults of all ages to successfully transition into careers from holistic perspectives. I bring to bear my own diverse and successful life experience on your behalf, including entrepreneur, writer, financial services professional, educator, youth counselor and advocate and community events organizer. I know what it's like to change majors in college, try out several possibilities in my 20s, go back to school, and to re-assess and re-start my career later in life. Let me help you write/re-write your career story. 

Self-Discovery: Purpose, Talents, Skills, Interests and Personal Style

Self-Assessment: Matching Career Options to Interests and Aptitudes for 'Best Fit' 

Evaluating College & Other Educational Options For 'Best Fit'

Making a Career Action Plan:

Step by Step

Learn to Share, Brand and Tell Your New Career Story: Resumes, LinkedIn, Networking, etc.

My Post-College Gap Year Experience: When I graduated from U.C. Davis in the mid-1980s, I still had no real idea what I wanted to do. I was torn between the FBI and Peace Corps because I wanted to help 'save the world'. So I took a job as a loss prevention officer at an area drugstore where my job was to catch shoplifters (to see if crime prevention appealed to me). It turned out that many of the individuals I caught were children from broken backgrounds. One thing led to another and I ended up volunteering at a local center as a volunteer crisis counselor. I learned that there were thousands of California youth who were runaways and living out on the street, struggling to find their next meal as well as an identity and life path. Next thing you know, here I am (in the back) with my friend Ted Wimberg conducting a 3000 mile 'Ride for Runaways' throughout California to raise awareness and funding for the plight facing these young people. This post-college 'gap year' experience eventually led me to explore and research how to help young people find their way in life. 

Testimonials

"When I need updates about work and higher education learning trends, there's no one better than Michael. His deep skills in navigating the college and career exploration and transition process make him a top-notch advisor.  This ability and knowledge-coupled with his range of assessment tools as sensitively applied-offers a unique package."

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-Rich Feller, Ph.D., Former President of the National Career Development Association and University Distinguished Teaching Scholar, Colorado State University

"I had worked in commercial real estate for over 8 years, and my ultimate goal for such a long time was to become a retail property manager. But as time went on, I no longer wanted to be that anymore, and I felt like I was stuck in a professional rut not knowing what to do next. You might say that I was going through a pre-midlife crisis. I just didn't think it was possible to tackle such an immense obstacle of changing careers with what felt like it being so late in the game. But, thankfully, this is where Michael came in. I started working with him on the 10-hour career-counseling course, and it has been an eye-opening experience. He had me do a series of tests and games to really dive into my career values and skills, and we would then discuss the results in detail. At 33 years old, I had never once examined myself to see what careers matched my aptitudes or my interests. I’m now more aware of myself, the endless career possibilities out there, and that there’s a way out of this feeling of being stuck. Having said all this, I have narrowed down my career choices and am planning on going back to school. The thought of changing careers was scary before, but now I’m excited about it and feel better equipped to handle such an undertaking thanks to Michael’s counseling. I highly encourage anyone looking for more professional fulfillment to work with him – the results might just surprise you. –  Ana R.

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