ABSTRACT
In this chapter, I discuss the centrality of individuals’ careers to their lives. I talk about how counselors can help their clients find personal meaning in work, and I identify a number of strategies to assist in that process. Barriers and pathways to succeeding in this quest are described, as are methods of integrating the ideas behind self-efficacy and learned optimism theories into the career counseling process. I present the concepts of spirituality, hope, and optimism and a variety of decision-making processes: planned happenstance, positive uncertainty, and the postmodern approaches of narrative, integrative life planning, and constructivism. I also briefly describe school-based career counseling and adult transitions. By following four cases, I demonstrate the application of several of these concepts and theories.
