This week is all about getting in gear for Halloween in my household, hence my frame of mind as I post today. I’m psyched because my son chose to be a doctor this year. It’s the kind of choice that makes a mom proud. OK, I know I should get a grip. It’s a Halloween costume, not necessarily what he wants to be when he grows up, but a mom can dream right? Besides, it’s better than his original idea to be a penguin (he was on a “Happy Feet” kick at the time).

I’m excited because his choice indicates to me that he has an admiration for the health profession, and maybe that could turn into a career aspiration someday. My logic is faulty given my own costume history (clown, hippie, punk rocker, etc.), but I’ll take it as a good sign nonetheless.

It also got me to thinking about a larger issue (thanks for bearing with all my mom gushing until I got to my point!) — why some of us choose our careers when we’re young, while others are still on a quest for career fulfillment well into adulthood. More important, which is the better way to go? Does it make sense to know your whole life that you want to be a lawyer or teacher, having never gotten to experience what the job actually entails for yourself? And just because you’ve wanted to be a video game designer since the third grade, how can you know if you’ll be able to grasp the advanced technology until you start learning it? Then again, it’s not easy being an undecided college major or hopping from job to job in search of one that inspires you to propel forward.

The solution is to have a realistic sense of what your dream job is all about. That means whether you have a clear sense of which field you’d like to enter or not, you need to go beyond the generalizations (”I want to help others,” or “I enjoy working with children”), and get into the nitty gritty. Some questions to think about:

- Can I handle the demands of this profession? Think about work hours, if travel is required, how much schooling is needed, etc. In theory, event planning may sound wonderful, until you realize that you might be out of town three quarters of the year and you hate flying.

- What are my sources of information about this career? If you want to become a crime scence investigator because you love watching CSI, it’s a good idea to do some more digging. Speak to real life people on the job to get a sense of what they do. Find a related professional organization and learn more about the job. Do some research into educational programs and see what the coursework is like. Don’t rely on fictional characters to tell the whole truth.

- Is this a viable career path now and in the foreseeable future? Examine what you want to do and think about what’s going on in the world. For instance, now might be a good time to go into a “green” career because it’s the important issue of the next generation. Working as a real estate agent might be tough, though, until the housing market levels out.

In essence, before you decide which career costume best suits you, try it on for size. And if you’re not happy with your pick, you can always try something new next year.

When did you figure out which career was right for you?