Christian Faith and Career Counselling
Career Counselling: A Holistic Approach
Vernon G. Zunker's book, ‘Career Counselling: A Holistic Approach' is a good resource book for career counseling programs. The book is in its ninth edition and gives valuable insight to career counselors on the current job market and the various external and internal factors that can influence career development. Globalization and its effects is a major factor to be considered by any individual and more so a career counselor. The book addresses these concerns in addition to the current economic, social trends that impact the workplace and the workforce (Zunker, 2014).
The book's main focus is to provide career counseling resources that would be able to assist workers who are vehemently searching for work in the fields they have been trained in. To assist these kinds of workers, the book proposes that counselors should also address personal concerns while giving career counseling (Zunker, 2014). The book also urges career counselors to focus on the clients strengths and assets. Focus is also directed at the concept of resiliency (Zunker, 2014) and advising clients to develop a resilient character that would strive to thrive in the face of adversity and against all the obstacles that spring forth. The book is based on the trait and factor oriented theory of development that relies heavily on a series of psychometric tests that seek to measure individual attributes and talents that are required for a specific job. The theory focuses on seven attributes of an individual: general intelligence, attainments, physical characteristics, circumstances, dispositions, specialized aptitudes and interests (Osipow, 1990)
As a Christian counselor, the book is quite relevant because regardless of one's religious inclinations or lack thereof, when it comes to making career choices, the strengths and assets of the client would have to be taken into consideration. The bible reads in the book of Proverbs 18: 16 that ‘A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men' (KJV). This scripture can be applied to Zunker's recommendation for focusing on people's strengths and assets to find the right career. As a Christian, the belief is that one's gifts and talents, when nurtured and honed, would be able to bring success. This aspect of Zunker's book can be combined with Christian teachings to counsel a client on finding the right career. Addressing personal concerns when giving career advice is also crucial for a Christian counselor since it would not be prudent to counsel a person dealing with a particular struggle or weakness to work in an environment that encourages them to indulge in the vice.
The books emphasis on a client's personal concerns, assets and strengths is important because as a Christian counselor, it is important to encourage a client to know who they are and to understand themselves and their strengths in order to thrive in whichever workplace they choose. A Christian counselor should provide meaning- centered counseling that seeks to help a client find meaning in their lives (Wong, 2011). As a counselor, the concepts in the book would provide adequate information for career counseling. Also, it is my opinion that, based on the books recommendations, clients should begin focusing on their personal strengths at an early age. An early focus would lead the clients to choose the right courses to which they would be adequately trained. Lastly, regardless of who the client is, the aspect of resilience would be crucial since the job market is ever changing.
How Then should we Work? Rediscovering the Biblical Doctrine of Work.
Hugh Welchel's book seeks to shift people's focus from viewing work as just a way of making money without any fulfillment gained from it. He suggests that many Christians nowadays view work as a burden and something negative while leisure is regarded as good and positive. Welchel also seeks to disprove the notion that real, full- time Christian service only involves working in the church or in ministry (Welchel, 2011).
The books relate to a Christians attitude towards work and seeks to restore and emphasize the notion that work is a calling from God and not something one does to make money or to pass the time during the days. The book suggests that to a Christian, there should not be a separation between the secular work and work in the ministry. Work in a secular setting and work in the church ministry are both to be considered as callings from God (Welchel, 2011). In essence, church- related work should not be considered more honorable or more spiritual than a legal, medical, business or other profession. Welchel suggests that Christians should be able to work wherever the Spirit of God leads them since the Kingdom of God is able to influence every dimension of life (Welchel, 2011). Welchel's book is based on the social cognitive development theory. The theory focuses on an individual's belief in his or her ability to attain goals that have been set (Osipow, 1990).
As a Christian career counselor, I would highly recommend Welchel's book for all career counselors especially those offering career counseling to Christians. The book debunks a lot of notions that are currently held by Christians in relation to work and especially in regard to callings from God. The book would help a career counselor advice Christian clients on biblical aspects of work and of the fact that they can work in any field and still be able to please God. As a career counselor, one encounters clients who are not Christian and other who have different Christian beliefs. To propose uniform advice to be used on all of the clients would not be adequate. I would advise future readers of the book to be aware that it majorly applies to Christian clients. In addition, I would suggest that Welchel's suggestions be merged with other sound career counseling advice and techniques in order to cater for the clients who do not subscribe fully to the Christian faith.
The book is insightful and quite resourceful. It allows a Christian to understand the various aspects of working in a secular vocation. Once the counselor understands God's will and word in relation to the secular vocation, then they are in a much better position to provide sound career advice to other Christians. The concepts in Welchel's book can be used to integrate the Christian faith and work. There has been a major disconnect between the two especially among the Christian's who feel work is a secular vocation separate from the Christian life. Welchel's book debunks this notion and teaches a Christian counselor how to integrate the two worlds. A Christian counselor can also use the contents of the book to teach a client on how to use their work to impact the kingdom of God positively and how to fulfill their calling.
References
King James Version Bible
Osipow, S.H. (1990). Convergence in Theories of Career choice and Development: Review and Prospect. Journal of Vocational Behavior. Vol. 36, Issue 2 pp. 122-131
Welchel, H. (2012). How then should we Work? Rediscovering the Biblical Doctrine of Work. Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press
Wong, P.T.P. (2011). Meaning- Centered Counseling. Retreived on June 24, 2016 from http://www.drpaulwong.com/meaning-centred-counselling/
Zunker, V.G. (2014). Career Counseling: A Holistic Approach. 9th edition. Cengage Learning
