Today's post has a bit of a dual edge to it: Do what you love, but (for the love) pick something to do.
Harvey MacKay is quoted as saying, "Find something you love to do and you will never have to work a day in your life."
The premise of this statement is pretty simple: if you love what you do then doing it won't feel like work and maybe even a little like play.
I have read plenty of articles and blogs over the years that call this the worst career advice you could ever give, but I can't help but fall back on what I have personally observed.
I have known people from all walks of life.
I have met people making six figures a year in careers they took because it was good money despite the fact that they hate it. These people have every amenity money can buy but don't enjoy life.
They drive their shiny new car back and forth from the office they hate to the expensive house they really only get to sleep in and park next to the boat that they never have time to take out. And when they do get time off they feel the need to spend thousands of dollars to go somewhere else... anywhere else to forget how much they hate their life.
I have also met people who make less than $40,000 doing something they love and they are the most content people I have ever met.
They drive a beat up old car to work every morning and home to their modest house every night. They don't have a boat but they make it down to the river at least once a week to fish. When they get some time off they usually just spend more time doing the things they already do... because they love their life.
Now, I do understand that I have exaggerated things a bit.
Not everyone who makes good money is miserable, nor is every poor person happy; it just doesn't work that way. But there is still something to be said for loving what you do.
Let us take two hypothetical people; John and Jack. Both of them work entry level positions for Company A; but while John has always wanted to work in the industry Company A is in, Jack took the job because it was the highest paying offer he had after college.
John loves his job, so he is probably a lot more enthusiastic about performing even the most mundane and routine tasks of his job. Jack really wishes he were somewhere else, so he does the least amount required to stay out of trouble. When it comes time for promotions and bonuses who do you think is more likely to be selected by the boss?
This likelihood is why the first part of my advice is do what you love. However, the second part of my advice is just as important... pick something to do.
My issue has not really been that I was trying to get a job I didn't like; my problem has really been that I keep changing what I think I want to be when I "grow up" (or perhaps the problem is that I don't WANT to grow up, but that is another topic).
For me the real hard part of the advice is to pick something and stick with it.
The problem is that I find so many different things interesting and can usually figure out a way to be somewhat successful at any of them. Which is why at 32 I have only an A.A. degree to show for the 136 credit hours I have earned.
I am headed back to school to finish up that degree in Management and Organization that will hopefully lead me to a job in Human Resources.
I can't promise I will land a dream job, but at least I will be in a field I enjoy and I will finally have picked something to do.
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