To be able to plan for my future career and see what area of the fashion industry would be best for me to be involved with, I have decided to do a personal SWOT analysis to figure out what why skills are and what I really need to improve on.
Personal SWOT analysis
Strengths
I have strong creative skills and an eye for design and trend.
An advantage that I have is that I have a background in fashion design where I have learnt how to design and construct garments. I am very eager to learn new skills, hugely passionate about fashion also
Weaknesses
Many other Fashion Buying students already have a variety of work experiences in the fashion industry and many may also have a retail job in their spare time.
I have a lack of confidence and I am a very shy person which I feel is holding me back and stopping me from putting myself out there. I think it is important that I work on my confidence and take small baby steps to achieve this, such as answering questions in seminars and doing more public speaking. Job interviews are something I struggle with I am lacking in my Microsoft Office skills including Excel and Outlook, this is something I need to improve on.
Opportunities
Put together a portfolio for internship interviews. Work on my fashion blog as this is something I am very passionate about and shows my creative skills and writing skills. I would like to teach myself html to create my own design and teach myself photography as currently the photography on my blog is lacking and I would like to look more professional.
I could start applying for summer internships or short work experiences as this is something that I want to achieve by the end of the summer.
Threats
My time management needs to be improved as this is something that I struggle with. This may prevent me from achieving goals in the future if it is not improved. The fashion industry is very competitive and there are many people applying for the same jobs that may have more qualifications and experience, this makes it hard to stand out.
Next year I would like to have two work experiences on my CV. I would like to be able to achieve this by starting to apply now and writing cover letters. I would also like to be on track to passing my degree. At the end of next year I will need to start applying for graduate jobs and updating my CV. Another thing I would like to do is to work more on my fashion blog and improve my blogging skills which may lead to more opportunities.
In 2021, the year I graduate I would like to have secured a graduate job or be working towards getting one. I would also like to have passed my degree.