What would be the perfect job title for your current position? How would you title the perfect position?
I resist using the Department of Labor’s “Dictionary of Occupational Titles” for mature adults looking for new careers. Any categorization of a person’s skills may overlook unique personal characteristics or interests. And also, I’m frequently amazed at some of the titles actually listed there. Here are just a few – I am not making any of these up. They are listed in the 660 pages of DOL job titles. You can check them out yourself in the new edition of the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Check these out: Ear‑Muff Assembler, Ecclesiastical‑Art‑Metal Worker, Drawstring Knotter, Dope Mixer, Doorshaker, Doll‑Eye‑Setter, Dinkey Operator, Butt Maker, Breast Buffer, Brain Picker, Asparagus Sorter, Head Switcher, Toe Pounder, Umbrella Tipper, and of course Easter Bunny.
These are more creative than I could make up. So, obviously, you can give yourself most any title. When required to list my position in my company, I write “Creative Thinker.” What do you want to be when you grow up?
Tags: department of labor, job, occupation, title
Dan Miller's Blog 
March 5, 2008 at 3:40 am
While at my old company, I had 4 different titles in 5 years — not because my job had changed but because my company was trying to figure out what the team for which I was responsible was really doing (we created software in a manufacturing company). In order to save the company money, I chose to not have new business cards created because my initial title was good enough.
Titles are meaningless reflections of what HR thinks you might be doing when they hire you. The truly successful don’t worry about their title and create a position that is “title-less”.
March 18, 2008 at 10:04 am
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