While this time of year is traditionally focused on year 12 students moving on to the next chapter of their lives - whatever it may look like - they aren't the only ones going through change.
Careers education is not only the purview of the graduating class. Kids across all the year groups are grappling with decisions that feel heavy with the burden of preparing them for future careers.
Our first ideas about what we could do for a living and how we could shape our lives comes from those we grow up with.
As children we look to our family, our guardians, our family friends to recognise possibilities for what we believe is possible for ourselves.
Careers education, then, really starts from birth.
My son has just finished year 6 and is preparing for his transition to high school, with equal parts trepidation and excitement.
However, this is not the first time he has been confronted with opportunities that will shape his future.
In primary school, he was invited to join the Hands On Learning group where they did trades-based tasks around the school.
As much fun as this sounds, he came home and declared that this just isn't him - he doesn't enjoy pouring concrete or weeding gardens, and the other kids just didn't "get" him.
They weren't his tribe, he said. And that's OK - school is about experimenting, trying new things and finding what you like and don't like.
It's also about developing resilience and finding the strength to say, "this isn't for me, and this is why" then trying something else.
School is often a place where kids feel misunderstood by others, but it should be a place where we build an understanding of ourselves, if not based on finding our niche, then by recognising what isn't.
If you hit year 9 while you are still figuring it all out (and let's face it, who isn't?), then choosing your electives can be a highly daunting task when framed within the context of what you want to choose for years 11 and 12, and beyond.
Learning about the possibilities is essential to navigating the pathway to adult career choices.
Limiting our exposure to careers based on what our family or friends do can give us a blinkered idea of what we can achieve.
We need to break down barriers and stereotypical ideas of the kinds of jobs that we can do and the only way we can do that is to recognise the possibility of success in areas that we hadn't previously considered.
Even from primary school, asking kids whether they like to play outside or inside, solve puzzles, write stories, make things, learn things, draw things, play or work with others or on their own, read, act, help, protect - all of these characteristics emerge as a child grows and they evolve as they continue on towards adulthood.
Teaching children to be aware of these preferences, consciously nurture their natural inclinations and safely challenge their comfort zones to explore new ideas and experiences is the best way to prepare a child for the world of work.
It is easy to see our children as clones of ourselves.
There's little that inspires more pride than when another tells us, "oh s/he's just like you!"
It can be challenging to encourage your child to step outside of the shadow of your own self and recognise their individual strengths and capabilities if they are different to your own.
It is also challenging to shed the ideas of what we believed to be necessary subjects for a student to study at school based on our generation's experiences.
I can't tell you how many times I've heard parents insist that their child study the highest level of maths along with physics and chemistry, despite their child's personal interests, aspirations or capabilities.
In today's labour market, subjects like design & technology, society and culture, environmental sciences, information processes & technology and languages teach valuable skills in entrepreneurship, innovation, community connections, climate change and communications.
So, as each of our children embark on 2021, letting our children experiment with their learning and find their own tribe is vital to helping them shape a future for themselves they can feel connected to.
Zoë Wundenberg is a careers consultant and un/employment advocate at impressability.com.au