5 Ultimate Steps For Choosing The Right Career
#1 — don’t limit yourself
I recently came across several videos and blog posts about how to find the best career path.
All of them focused on one main thing: sustainability.
Those people genuinely share tips. Because they want to help others. It’s admirable.
And while sustainability is valuable, I can’t help but feel that they missed the most important things you should focus on when it comes to your career.
It’s ONLY the most important decision of your life
Let me start by getting this off my chest — I resent the word ‘career’.
There, I said it.
Well, actually, let me be more accurate — I don’t like what it represents.
It’s undoubtedly an unpopular opinion and some of you might not even be able to respect it. But at least try to hear me out.
An occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person’s life and with opportunities for progress.
There is an absolute acceptance amongst us that everyone needs to have a career.
What’s so wrong about it?
To begin with, young adults feel extremely pressured because society expects them to choose a career path as early as possible. The longer they wait, the more stressful it becomes. The more distressed they are, the more likely to compromise just to get it over with.
“You need to choose what you’re going to do with your life,” their parents say.
The unavoidable comparison to their peers (“Jacqueline’s son is going to be a doctor!”) and the financial struggle that comes with being independent are two other key factors that forces young adults to make a rushed decision.
After all, it’s the most important decision in a person’s life. Whichever occupation you’ll opt for is what you’ll spend the majority of your time doing.
This burden is felt by teenagers too. Their parents and teachers both tell them that without good grades they’ll never get into a good college and thus they’ll have very limited options for their career.
There’s a certain point in a teenager’s life when their creativity and imagination slowly starts to dissipate. We’ve all went through that phase when we were forced to become “realists.”
Career? It’s 2019!
We enjoy waving the “it’s 2019!” flag every time an old-school behavior that should leave this modern world appears. Yet, at the same time we ignore our own old-school way of life.
Seriously, how does it still make sense to pick and stick to a single occupation throughout your entire life?
Is it just because we’re looking for self-determination?
Saying “I’m a doctor” or “I’m a writer” does feel nice. It gives a sense of purpose to your life. But it’s also very limiting. Are you just a writer? Are you just a doctor?
Two hundred years ago people’s occupation was what their father used to do. He would teach them how to excel in it. This skill has been passed on from generation to generation. It served a very clear purpose — survival. Then universities were established, and those who could afford them were able to acquire a different occupation than their parents.
And now it’s time to wave that “it’s 2019” flag again.
Much like we no longer depend on our father’s profession, we also no longer need to commit to one occupation for the rest of our lives.
But it’s hard to think otherwise
If you already chose your career path then you’re already invested.
Your student loans are there to remind you of all those years of studying. Your recent pay rise tells you how far you’ve come.
Can you let all your hard work go to waste?
In her book, ‘What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20’, Tina Seelig says that we tend to convince ourselves that if we devoted a big part of our lives to something (be it a job or a relationship), even if we feel miserable — it must be worthwhile.
Many people feel unfulfilled in their current occupation. They are counting the minutes till the end of the workday. They are just waiting to go home and do what they really like.
No one dares to ask themselves: should I change my occupation?
Instead, we’d like to believe that there’s something wrong with our workplace. The pay isn’t good enough. Maybe it’s the excessive hours or the terrible boss and the boring colleagues.
We’re not open to the idea of changing our occupation for two main reasons:
Firstly, it means to start all over again. Invest time and money.
Secondly, it’s the shame. You admit that you chose wrongly in the first place which is a failure in the eyes of society.
It’s okay to have one occupation in a lifetime
As long as you’re staying passionate about it. As long as you’re not limiting your ability to grow and change. There’s nothing wrong with having one main occupation throughout your entire life.
But there’s nothing wrong about having multiple occupations too.
We are all individuals and there isn’t just one single concept which work for everyone.
Over the years, I had so many friends who told me about their college applications but when I asked what they intend to study they said: “I don’t know yet.”
To the majority of people and certainly to them it wasn’t a big deal.
After all, college is a must. And since it’s not open to discussion you better apply first and choose later, right?
I find this shocking.
This is exactly one of the reasons why people make rushed decisions only to wake up one day, 20+ years later, and feel lost and miserable. Midlife crisis they call it. And it can easily be avoided.
So without further ado, here are the five steps you need to follow in order to choose your best career path:
1. Don’t limit yourself
Avoid the question “what do you do?” which implies that anyone can sum up their entire life with one title. In fact, stop doing anything that can limit your self-belief. Long ago, one’s surname was also their profession. But since then the world has changed. (luckily)
Don’t lock yourself up in a box that’s titled “software developer” because then you’ll never be able to even think of becoming a poet, a journalist or a fashion designer. You can have as many labels as you want. And actually, you don’t need a box at all.
You are allowed to change. You owe explanations only to yourself.
2. Define your passions
Work takes the majority of our time. So we better make sure we are extremely thrilled about what we do.
A good pay check and benefits might seem exciting but that could only last a few months. You need to be excited every day when you wake up. You must be eager when you start your workday, so much that you wouldn’t count the minutes until it’s over.
Sounds good, right? It can only happen once you know what your passions are. And it’s much simpler than it sounds. Deep down, you know what drives you. A good rule of thumb — think of things you do (or used to do) that are interesting and fun so much that time passes by without you even realizing. Those things that make you skip a meal by accident or stay up all night.
3. What’s your dream workday?
When you know what your passions are you can define your ideal day at work.
Allow yourself to imagine. What would you love to do daily?
Do not focus on why your ideal day isn’t realistic or why it’s impossible to earn any money from it. That’s just your granny talking in your head. And while she has good intentions — she isn’t you.
Instead, write down your fantasy. How your ideal workday would look like. Get specific in terms of the actual work you’re going to do, your desired flexibility, the people you’re going to work with (if any), and the goals you’re going to achieve.
4. Get going!
There’s no need to compromise. You don’t need to become a butcher just because your father is. If you know what your ideal workday is then you have a clear vision of what you want to pursue. If you’re not sure whether this type of work exists then first try to consult with people who work in that field. You can also ask people on Quora or on Facebook and get some insights that way. There’s a very good chance that your ideal concept of occupation actually exists.
But what if it doesn’t?
Well, then you’ll be the first one to do it. Take Veritasium for example. A guy who is passionate about making videos and science. For a long time he couldn’t find a way to pursue his passions but he didn’t give up. Eventually, he created his own job when he came up with Veritasium — a youtube channel that combines both of his loves.
This is the true essence of entrepreneurship — defining your ideal occupation and making it happen.
5. It’s never too late to change
Whether you worked as a PA in a law firm for the past five years or you recently decided to enroll to medicine studies — it’s never too late to change. Understanding this step is as crucial as all the previous ones.
Sometimes we realize that we’ve made a wrong decision. And sometimes passion wears off. There’s no shame in it.
Any expert investor knows that you don’t want to hold on to a bad investment. At some point you have to accept your loss. Life is very much the same. Changes and new investments are required for continued growth.
Finally, I’d like to stress out the importance of being occupied with something you’re truly passionate about. Obviously, this is the best way to live a fulfilled life. But there’s more to it.
People who are passionate about what they do take the world forward.
It’s pretty simple — if you aren’t passionate about what you do then you won’t be motivated to do it either.
Unmotivated people can never excel. We need a world full of entrepreneurs, doctors, politicians, engineers, lawyers, accountants, web developers, designers, writers and musicians who are pioneers. People who do groundbreaking work and advance the world forward with new ideas, concepts, and inventions.
So let’s not forget one important thing before we choose our path—
It’s 2019.
What is your ideal occupation? Are you already pursuing it? I’d love to hear from you. Share your answers in the comments below and let’s discuss!
Read/Watch more:
This story is published in The Startup, Medium’s largest entrepreneurship publication followed by +418,678 people.
Subscribe to receive our top stories here.
