Choosing the perfect career can either be an exciting adventure or a frustrating challenge. Know that it’s okay to change course along the way. Your interests will change over time as you are exposed to new opportunities and causes, and that will affect how you approach your future profession. Here are some important tips on how to choose the right career.
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This was an eye-opening realization when I read about this concept in Mark C. Perna’s book Answering Why. We’re constantly told to figure out what it is that we want to do as a career, but how often do we consider why we want to pursue that path? Have you ever worked somewhere and thought, “Why am I even doing this?” If yes, then you’re not alone.
What is it that drives you to be better at something? What’s the impact that you want to make on the world? Do you strive to improve environmental issues? Or maybe you want to motivate the youth to explore their own ideal dream careers. Do you have a soft spot for animals that need a loving home?
By focusing on a mission instead of a specific role, you open yourself up to possibilities beyond a specific task. Once you figure out the why, then you can focus on what it’ll take to accomplish it!
I cannot stress this tip on how to choose the right career enough: No one can determine your happiness but you. There are going to be more than enough people trying to tell you what you should be doing with your life. Most of it will come from a caring place, but you still need to think for yourself with this. You’re the one that will be committing many hours a day to the career. You’re the one that will be putting in the study hours for additional education. And above all else, you’re the one who will have to honestly answer, “Why am I doing this?” to yourself.
There might be family members and friends who will be “disappointed” in your decisions, but that’s their problem, not yours. Do not abandon your happiness to please others. Just as your interests and expectations will change over time, so will theirs. If they truly love you, then they will eventually celebrate your own success…hopefully.
People are quick to respond with the “You can’t make money doing that” line whenever you mention an interest that’s beyond their scope of career opportunities. There are doctors that specialize in popping pimples, for goodness sake!
Do not let anyone drive you away from pursuing a career that aligns with your interests! If there’s a demand for it anywhere in the world, you can get paid to do it!
Many people make the mistake of limiting their career opportunities to the skills they currently have. This is more so whenever someone earns a degree in a field that wasn’t ideal for them, so now they believe they must commit to the skills they have obtained.
You can learn new skills, but if you have no interest in the skills you have obtained, your career is going to be mentally draining. One solution to this is to brainstorm ways you can align your current skills to a more suitable interest.
Let’s take for example someone who grew up in a household full of mechanics. Due to this constant exposure, they are perfectly capable of performing basic maintenance upkeeps but doesn’t really enjoy the physical process of it. Many people would make the mistake of telling this individual, “You’re so good at this. You should become a mechanic.” Hold on. Let’s look at different options.
The physical part of the maintenance upkeep might not be pleasing to this individual, but maybe they enjoy helping others learn more about proper upkeep procedures. In this case, a customer service role might be a better fit. If they enjoy writing, they could also help provide content for the instruction manuals. Or maybe they can handle the social media pages for car dealerships that clearly summarizes what each service is for. The list goes on.
If you are desiring a career change but feel trapped by your narrow skillset, then try to use your current skills to complement your new interests. New skills can be obtained along the way.
According to EducationData.org, the student debt in the United States has reached 1.6 trillion dollars! That’s outrageous! And one contributing factor to this is that we’re still feeding our youth the worn-out myth that they need to go to college for a bachelor’s degree straight out of high school in order to land a successful career. This is only partially true. It truly depends on what it is that you want to do as a career.
Check out the video below that further explains the Success in the New Economy.
In summary, the US job market follows a 1:2:7 ratio where for every job that requires a Master’s degree or higher, two jobs will require a Bachelor’s degree, and seven jobs will only require an Associate’s degree, certification, or license.
What does this mean? Your desired career path might not have as high of a price tag as you might have thought. Start with the minimum amount of education needed, get your work experience, then build onto your education. This way, you won’t be fighting a significant amount of debt with entry-level jobs and you’ll have the work experience to support the degree you need for a higher qualified position.
Side note: Some companies offer Employer’s Education Benefits if you are taking courses while employed.
Imagine going thousands of dollars into debt for a degree in a field you don’t even enjoy. There are too many individuals who are regretfully living through the price of their educational decisions. If you suck at what you do, the piece of paper won’t help you. If you hate what you do, you won’t have the motivation to advance in that field. Then, like many, you might fall into the trap of feeling “stuck” in your career choice.
It’s never too late to learn something new, but don’t wait until you are buried in debt to decide that your education is not aligning to what you really want to do with your life.
This falls back onto identifying your mission first. If you know your end goal, then you can focus on the opportunities that will lead to that goal instead of one specific position. For example, let’s say that your mission is to better educate people on ways to prep meals that are nutritional and delicious. What positions could help you accomplish this?
You could become a Chef at a healthy-living restaurant, a Certified Health Coach for clients seeking professional guidance, or even a Content Writer for a health and wellness company. The opportunities are vast as to ways you can contribute to your specific mission.
I get it. You have bills to pay, and sometimes during extremely harsh times, you might need to pick up a temporary position until you can find something better. This was my situation after graduation when my work-study job ended. I needed money to make ends meet until I could find a job in my field. I applied like crazy to places that were searching for immediate hire, and I settled for an “Events Planner” position. Based on the job description, I thought it would be different than what I was told during the training. Either way, it was income, so I sucked it up and experienced my first few weeks of hard-sales.
Nothing against anyone who has the charisma and tough-skin to handle these situations, but as someone with social anxiety, I dreaded my life during that period! The military was less stressful for me than following these innocent people around Sam’s Club trying to sell some freakin’ gel heat pads! I hated it!
Although I received compliments from my supervisors for providing marvelous service, when the third week arrived, I finally broke down into a maxed-out social anxiety attack. I could barely breathe. I could barely talk. It took all of my strength to flag down my trainer, and she had to guide me into the women’s restroom and guide me through breathing exercises as I desperately tried to explain what was wrong!
I knew I wouldn’t enjoy having to approach complete strangers like that, but I ignored the signs that my mind and body were telling me and ended up having to go to therapy for it.
Do not settle for a position that lists anything that you KNOW will make your life a hellish nightmare. We might not always end up at our ideal positions at the beginning, but let the position that you do land on be a stepping stone for you, not a mental death trap.
Let’s be real, many of our aspirations for careers change once we realize what all goes into it. I remember my little sister wanting to be a dentist when she was very little. She changed her mind as soon as she realized how nasty some people’s mouths can be! It can happen to any of us!
At one point, I wanted to become a seamstress, so my mom spoke with one of her friends who allowed me to volunteer at their cleaners business. The nice lady taught me how to use the sewing machine, how to pin the clothing properly, and how to mark the areas that needed the alterations. After about a week, I realized that this wasn’t exactly for me (I kept getting angry at the sewing machine) but I got to learn some amazing new skills. This volunteer opportunity provided me a better understanding of my interests (or lack of) so that I could readjust my plans for a better-suited career path.
Ah, yes. It’s the dream to be bringing in the big bucks. And all too common, I’ll hear our young adults shoot off careers like doctor, lawyer, engineer, etc. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with these careers by far. What’s wrong (and concerning) is when these individuals are asked why they wish to pursue this path and they respond with, “because it pays well.”
First off, the ones that get paid extremely well in these fields are the ones that have passionately dedicated their lives to mastering these skills. Second, if you’re miserable in the entry-level positions of these fields, then you’re not going to have the drive to pursue the career even further. Third, if you commit a lot of money to gain additional education in a field you weren’t even interested in beyond the potential paycheck, there’s going to come a day where you feel like you’ve dug yourself too deep to change paths. You can always switch gears to a different career path, but let’s try to identify a better path early on in the game.
What is it that drives you to want to improve your skills? What topics are you interested in studying during your free time? When the question comes down to how to choose the right career that pays well, the paycheck earned will depend on how much time and effort you’re willing to put into building up your skills and experience.
Have you switched careers from what you originally planned on doing? What motivated you to change to something new? Do you have additional tips on how to choose the right career? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
And as always, remember to live and learn from one story at a time.
Take care,
Kyndall Bennett from Kyrabe Stories
4 Ways to Overcome Imposter Syndrome
How to Tell if You Are Being Exploited at Work
How to Think Like a Decision Maker and Change Outcomes
Answering Why by Mark C. Perna
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