APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY IN THE WORKPLACE: THE UNSEEN CAREER BUILDER

Psychology for Professionals, DLSU Dasmarinas 

Coach Gino on adapting Psychology to the professional workspace

In all industries, and for all roles, the human element is the determining factor for success. Economies have changed over the past 30 years due to technological advances, opening diverse and innovative career paths for young professionals. With economic change comes cultural change - and there is easily the perception that traditional professional standards and leadership styles are no longer relevant and thus, have to be revamped. To some extent this is true, but Cognitive Behavioral Psychology (CBT) suggests that human behavior remains consistent with human biology - we think and feel as we always have, only expressing it in different ways. It is the astute professional that leverages this understanding of human behavior towards personal success and development, regardless of one's chosen field.

“We think and feel as we always have, only expressing it in different ways. It is the astute professional that leverages this understanding of human behavior towards personal success and development, regardless of one's chosen field.

This was the thesis of our talk with the graduating batch of Psychology at DLSU Dasmarinas. We took from our own experience of making the transition from Psychology towards a lucrative corporate career in Banking and Finance - an unlikely career path, but very rich in experience in applied psychology.

From Theory to Practice

We wanted to give the graduates practical advice for their professional career, and we took the position that ALL of their major subjects in Psychology were relevant and advantageous in a corporate setting. For example:

- Statistics & Psychological Measurement -> Market & Operations Research - Theories of Learning -> Personal Development & Coaching - Theories of Personality -> Team Leadership

These were just a few examples, but we reiterate the fact that all of subjects remain relevant, and can be used as starting point to develop to build oneself professionally. We emphasized the fact that while the subjects themselves give foundational knowledge on human cognition and behavior, it is up to intrepid Psychology graduate to contextualize the subject matter, and to draw application insight as they progress in their career.

The new batch of professionals were encouraged that this was something that they could do, because it is inherent to the field of Psychology that empowerment comes from personal responsibility. We parted with the optimism that they would use their self-awareness, insight, and drive for development to build a more conscientious and thriving workplace.