Career guidance with purpose

Career guidance with purpose Most people find fulfilment when they know the direction they want to follow in life, but for the ministry of labour, industrial relations and employment creation’s psychological counsellor at Opuwo, Kunene Region, Billy Mokjara, giving people a sense of direction and a sense of purpose for their future gives him satisfaction.

Humans have a lot of identities - one being the work identity which gives people a lot of purpose, not only from themselves but also from how other people relate to them, he says.

Mokjara joined the ministry in 2019 as an intern while completing his studies at the University of Namibia (Unam) before being permanently employed as a psychological counsellor last year.

He was always drawn to psychology while at school and most of his presentations during high school were always on psychology-related topics.

The vocational counselling services at the ministry offer career counselling and guidance to individuals to help them understand and cope with decisions or difficulties they may have in making career choices.

These services are offered to school learners and the public.

“Students may sometimes be unclear about what career they want to pursue - which is understandable because there are many factors that influence our career choices like finances, school grades or what our family members will think,” he says.

Vocational counselling (career counselling and guidance) helps people make the most satisfying career choices, he adds.

“We have psychometric testing tools that give us a more unbiased idea of the aptitude of a person, personality, and their interests are. Those three tools help the psychological counsellors suggest to individuals which careers may be the best for them”.

The ministry also offers psycho-education and motivational talks to schools, helps organisations with selection of recruitment to help organisations prepare employees for retirement through pre-retirement counselling.

Born and bred in Grootfontein, Oshikoto Region, Mokjara completed his secondary education at the Grootfontein Secondary School and then pursued a bachelor’s degree in psychology at Unam.

Despite his professional requirements to work with people, he describes himself as an introvert who spends quiet time at working to be physically strong, is empathetic, loves to see growth in others and helping them see their strong qualities and nurturing those.

In addition to his work, he also volunteers in community-building activities focusing on spiritual and intellectual upliftment of children (junior youth and adults) for the betterment of their societies, and psychosocial support and mental interventions for children and the youth.