New College Graduates — Here’s Why You Should Do What You Love
Right now Boston has thousands of ambitious new college grads trying to figure out the first step into their futures. If that’s you, I’m excited for you and I want to help you find your way.
Specifically, I want to help you find your way right here in Boston.
On behalf of all the growing companies here, I want to make sure you know that you are super important to us. We need you here in order to fulfill our amazing potential. And we want to help you fulfill yours.
So I’m going to publish a bunch of post over the next week or so to help you think about what you want to do — and how you can start doing it here in Boston!
Also, at the bottom of this post, you’ll find info on jobs I’m hiring for.
For today, I’m focusing on the first question so many people struggle with…
What should I do?
The answer is this:
You should do what you love.
I feel compelled to recognize that many people think this is a silly idea. At best, they see it as romantic. At worst, trivial and naïve.
I completely disagree and I want to explain my logic, so that you can resist that way of thinking. So that you can have the courage to commit to a path of work that you love. Because you’ll be much happier that way, and you’ll add a whole lot more to the world that we all share.
Loving the work you’re doing is absolutely essential if your goal is to do exceptional work and have an outsized impact on the world around you.
If that’s not your goal then this post probably won’t speak to you. But if it is, then consider the idea that creating great impact requires three things:
- You have to know what you want to be great at.
- You have to be capable of focusing on that thing.
- You have to be willing to put in the long hours and the sheer effort over time in order to actually become great at that thing.
It’s almost impossible to persevere to that degree if you’re not doing work that you love.
But if you care deeply about the work you’re doing, then you will spend more hours at it. So you will become better at it. And you will impact more people by doing it.
This is the math that takes over when you have a deep emotional connection to your work. It applies for everyone.
But what if you’re not sure what you love?
Or what you want to be great at? Or what kind of impact you want to have?
Here’s a clue, which I believe I learned from reading Brenda Ueland. Look for the things that, when you’re doing them, you lose track of time. That’s the most honest signal there is that you should do more of that thing. Banish all TV and social media from your life and just explore that. Trust that it will bring you where you need to go. Apply yourself there.
Remember what Joseph Campbell told us about the Hero journey:
The hero takes one step toward the gods, and the gods take ten steps toward the hero.
Here’s why you must do this. Because the opportunity is bigger than it’s ever been. Ever.
If you can figure out what you love and want, there has never been a better time in the history of humanity.
There has never been a better time to access the specialized learning around that thing. There has never been a better time in terms of your ability to interact with the other people who care about that thing. And there has never been a better time to take risks and try things out.
Boston is a microcosm of all that.
The ideas are here. The doers are here. The opportunities are here.
If you can identify what you love and what you want to learn and what impact you want to have, then there has never been a better time to be in Boston.
The Next Post in this Series
I’ll summarize some great resources on Boston events, along with some guidance on how to work those rooms to find the best opportunities.
Jobs I’m Hiring For Right Now
I am the City Lead for WeWork in Boston, and I’m going to be hiring a number of people over the next several weeks and months at our Fort Point and South Station buildings, starting with this Associate Community Manager position.
Who am I looking for? First and foremost, people who are absolutely determined to do what they love. People who are driven and also warm and enthusiastic and eager to learn and grow. This job will be intense and fast-paced — and absolutely life-changing. You can find me on Twitter at @davemacboston. If you’re interested in working with us, you can — and should — read about WeWork’s values here.
