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Review the information obtained from Phases 1-4, as well as any information gathered in this phase, including details of your skills, knowledge, experiences and personal traits. Make notes on the key points and mark where you can find information. Then start developing your action brief. Keep it short and concise. Aim for a 1–2 page document containing short, precise sentences.

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Define your career goal and write it down as the heading on an A4 sheet of paper or in a Word document. If you are applying for a specific job, you could write something like 'Applying for an administrative assistant position in local hospitals'. If you have a more generic career path in mind, you could write 'Become a human rights lawyer and work in an international organisation'. Add the date to the document. This shows when the action brief was created.

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Target audience: Which sector or group of people will you address? Following the above examples, these could be local hospitals or law firms.

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Objectives: Frame and list your objectives. These can be more detailed and precise and can be qualitative or quantitative. For example: 'Send x job applications each week', 'Obtain a job in a national organisation to gain experience first', and 'Get an international position within five years'.

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Reason and evidence: Write down why this career goal is suitable for you, taking into account your interests, skills, and values. For example, it matches my top strengths in organisational skills and time management, as well as my education and experience in the healthcare sector. In addition, there is steady demand for this kind of job in the sector”. Alternatively, you can create a bullet point list of reasons and evidence.

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What is holding me back? Make a list of the things holding you back. These could include a lack of specific skills, your geographic location, transport issues, a lack of time, a lack of confidence, or family obligations.

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Support and resources: List the types of support and help you need, and where you can access them (people and organisations). This could include education, childcare, mentoring, or networking opportunities.

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Materials, resources and budget: Plan what materials and resources you will need and make sure they are available. If relevant, set a budget, too.

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Schedule, tasks and deliverables: Set out detailed steps for each task and create a realistic schedule. Create a timeline to help you manage your career project and monitor your progress. Provide a detailed description of every task and deliverable, along with a deadline for each. Include relevant people and other external parties. This could also be included as an annex to the action brief. Make it easy to follow and monitor.

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Follow-up: Determine how you will stay on track with the career path process and evaluate what has been achieved and how successful it has been. Also, decide on the monitoring timeline and how you will measure outcomes. For example, consider the number of applications sent versus interviews, as well as qualitative feedback.

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Other information: Include any other relevant information relating to education, legal matters, or any other issues.

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Once ready, review your document and make any necessary changes.