What do you do for a career if you have no specific passion?

Parent Cafe
1

<p>Hi parents,</p>

<p>I'm a college student who is trying to figure out what to do with life. It seems that all the friends with whom I discuss this have similar feelings - we don't want to be stuck in a desk job staring at a computer from 8 to 6 every day for 40 years until we retire. (We are all people who have/just finished internships which involved doing just that.) I wonder if this is a product of the entitled mentality that kids of our generation have been raised with. While my grandparents would have been content with a well-paying white collar office job, it seems that my generation feels we need to find a career that we love so much that it doesn't feel like work.</p>

<p>What makes this all the more difficult is the fact that I am not passionate about anything in particular. My academic performance would be considered superlative by most standards, but I seem to have a very short attention span. I like learning about a subject in great depth for a short period of time, then moving on to a new area of focus. More like a sprint than a marathon, if you will. Hence, the idea of doing the same thing for 40 years is horrifying. I can't wrap my head around the concept of learning a lot about everything for 20 years, and then just focusing on one area (for your job) until the end of your life. However, you differentiate yourself in this society by specialization, not by being a renaissance man, so the inevitability of this outcome is understandable to an extent.</p>

<p>What I do value in life is freedom. Financial freedom, so that my family and I can buy whatever we please, eat whatever we want, play golf and take vacations regularly. (This is not in the realm of buying airplanes, so nothing outlandishly extravagant.) I am gradually realizing that any (conventional) career which provides the means to the lifestyle I want demands too much time - without which I will not be able to LIVE.</p>

<p>The reason I am particularly petrified is that I am now standing at a crossroads (or a highway intersection) in life. I look around me and I mostly see middle aged people who hate their jobs, but are too burdened by their debt and obligations to do anything about it. And so, before I get to that point, I would like to get it right first.</p>

<p>Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks.</p>

2

<p>Hmm, you say you want to take vacations regularly. What exactly will you be taking vacation from? Paris Hilton doesn’t take vacations, and yet she pretty much has the life you aspire to.</p>

3

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<p>Herein lies the problem. When you figure it out, let the rest of us know. The reality is, you don’t graduate from college, passion or not, and immediately have a dream job that pays well and lets you have all the time you need to play golf, travel, relax and be with your family. It takes sweat equity. Or a wealthy family.</p>

4

<p>^ I like my suggestion better … just be a celebrity!</p>

5

<p>=) I’m not considering the Paris Hilton lifestyle as a realistic possibility. It’s not as if I’m aiming to be a bum. When I say golf, I mean just 9 holes in the evening every other weekday, and a full round once a weekend. Traveling, maybe two weeks out of every year. </p>

<p>Trouble is, the jobs that pay well enough are all 80+ hours a week. As you get more senior, maybe it goes down to 60+ hours a week. I’m also not saying that I want to be able to enjoy all of this on my first job right out of college. It just seems depressing that so many people are making enough money, but don’t have the time to enjoy it, and/or they hate their jobs.</p>

6

<p>With a job in research, you are always “doing research,” but you are always working on something new. It’s not the same old same old. Do you have a knack any type of math or science?</p>

7

<p>I’ve been 40 years waiting for someone to say this again.
I said, “Again”</p>

<p>***“Tune In, Turn On, Drop out” ***.</p>

8

<p>Yes, I am pretty good at math/science. However, the opportunity cost of getting a PhD seems to be more than I can bear. I have considered consulting because of the short-term nature of the projects i.e. always working on something new, as you said. </p>

<p>To summarize the question: How did you find a career that you love enough to do for 40 years, and which balances financial rewards with the time to enjoy those rewards?</p>

<p>LongPrime, that is rather cryptic. Do you mind clarifying?</p>

9

<p>^ Jeez, do you ever need to “tune in”
You so funny.</p>

10

<p>What is your major?</p>

11

<p>LongPrime: Sorry I wasn’t alive in the 1960s so I didn’t understand that reference until I googled and wikipediaed it. I’m sure getting stoned takes the cake for constructive advice. Thanks a bunch.</p>

<p>colorado_mom: Undecided for now, fortunately.</p>

12

<p>Start your own business, Real Estate and Insurance can achieve what you want and more. But, ONLY IF you are successful.</p>

<p>To start your own business, you need capital, so if you don’t have it, it is hard. However, there are many street vendors became milionares.</p>

<p>Real Estate and Insurance are the two that have the least capital requirements. At the beginning, you struggle to survive, if you do and once you have established, you can make a lot of money and all the free time to play.</p>

13

<p>Lol. You want what most of us probably want. But that financial freedom comes from doing a job that pays well. And an awful lot of those are business jobs.</p>

<p>You mentioned consulting. I started my career with one of the big IT/integration consulting firms, and continue to consult as a project manager almost 25 years later. Here is what I would say about it related to your comments above:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>You would still spend a lot of your day at a computer or in meetings. The clients are pretty much all businesses, so you are still working in the business world.</p></li>
<li><p>You don’t switch clients every week. You may spend years at the same client sometimes, shorter periods other times. I have spent from 3 months to 5 years at a given client (although I did different things over the 5 year period). Over time I have worked in several different industries and a lot of different technologies. But there are still days when I wanted to run screaming (or curse my client, grab a beer, and slide down the chute :)) because I can’t stand to do the same thing for one more day.</p></li>
<li><p>The pay is good as you rise through the ranks, BUT you give an awful lot of your life to the work. As you said, an 80 hour week is not uncommen. If you do what I did (work for them for about 10 years to build a great skill base) and if you have a knack for it, then you do have other career options of going to work for a company or consulting on your own. I rarely work more than 40 hours a week now as an independent consultant, but I paid my dues to build a great skill base and client contact list so I can be more selective about what projects I take and what clients I work for.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>In my opinion there are no real short cuts to investing a lot of time (and maybe money for education) to build skills that people will pay a lot of money for. You can be smart and try to pick an area to work in that will have a lot of growth in the future, or look for a “seam” between areas (someone who can act as a go-between for departments or companies can be very valuable). Or you can take entreprenurial risk and start your own business. But fundamentally you have to make the investment.</p>

14

<p>You’re posing one of my favorite questions - how to make the right choices in life. At fifty plus I’m still a believer in following your dreams and interests. It’s important to take yourself seriously and reflect on your choices as your choices tell a lot about what makes you happy and what you want in life. You won’t have it all, but if you follow your heart and spirit you’ll definitely achieve many of your greatest dreams and aspirations for living.</p>

<p>Experiences will help you define yourself and your goals. Experiences will let you know what you absolutely don’t want and what feels right. So don’t worry too much about the exact fit, live life and try things out. Prioritize about what you want the most.</p>

<p>For me, family was always the leading motive. I knew I wanted to be a mom more than anything and that has motivated many of my life choices. I also knew that I wanted a career that made a difference and that was creative. I inched my way toward a profession that allows me to do both. Is it perfect - no! Is it a good fit - yes.</p>

<p>As I grow older I’ve identified other priorities including a love of travel, nature, the human story, writing and meaningful relationships mainly with family members. I’ve had to give up on a few dreams such as the architecturally inspiring home and the best clothes/fashion, but that’s a small price to pay for the wonderful times I’ve been able to have with the people I love most and the meaning I get from my profession.</p>

<p>In summary, take time to journal, reflect, read and ask yourself lots of questions. Write often about your “dream life” and then look for ways to make it come true. My college inspired me with that message and now I try to inspire my children and students with the same message. You will make the life you want with reflection, hard work, prioritizing and lots of living. Best of luck in your journey.</p>

15

<p>Great thoughts and ideas intparent!</p>

16

<p>You don’t have to follow the example of so many and dig yourself a deep debt hole that ties you down to a dead-end job. Rent something modest or buy less than you can afford. Save up and pay cash for things. Save an emergency fund so you can try something new when it comes along. Drive a beater car. Read a Dave Ramsey book. Keep yourself liquid until your dream job comes along.</p>

<p>I was a lot like you are, and still am to an extent. I have a really good job that’s really stable. It’s not my dream job and I’ll never get rich, but that income allows me to do the things that I really do enjoy and support the same for my family. For some people their job is their life and that’s good, but for some, their job is their job and it allows them to have the life that they love.</p>

<p>Good luck to you.</p>

17

<p>In a way, the OP is lucky because he/she is not cursed with a love of a pursuit that is highly competitive and usually poorly paid unless you hit the bigtime (i.e. the arts, academe, sports). People with strong passions often must pursue them to the detriment of economic security (they do it “for love”). If you are not driven by a passion to do something in particular, it can be easier to be content with pursuing a field that provides you with enough economic security to achieve specific life goals. Not every job has to be a vocation. There is nothing wrong with finding primary life meaning in your family, community service, or hobbies instead of your career. Nevertheless, you will have to work, and you will occasionally be bored and frustrated, because that is life too.</p>

<p>I do think that many young people have extremely unrealistic expectations about the satisfactions to be expected from paid labor. If it were fun and wonderful all the time, no one would have to be paid to do it.</p>

18

<p>You don’t have to be stoned or whatever.
The age old saying can be taken in many contexts. In a previous 40 years, Robert Frost said the same thing in the “Road Not Taken”. And somewhere between 1965 and 2005, it was “No Regrets.”</p>

<p>Most people, “Just Do It,” until they find something that they like to do.</p>

19

<p>It’s hard for me to tell exactly how you want to live. When you say you want your family to buy whatever they please, eat whatever they want, play golf, and take vacations regularly … well, I’m afraid that does sound very unrealistic. For the vast, vast majority of people, that just doesn’t happen – as you’ve heard and noticed.</p>

<p>But I will say this, you sound like a really smart cookie to me, and like you’re simply ‘saying out loud’ what so many people wish they could have. I think you’re definitely on the right track even trying to conceptualize what it is you want and how you’re going to get there.</p>

<p>I also think that you haven’t come close to exhausting all the possibilities of doing what you want for a living, and yet having what you want in life. There are so many jobs out there! There are plenty of different occupations that don’t involve a desk and all the same exact circumstances day after day. Lots of jobs pay well enough for you to live in certain areas of the world, including the U.S., comfortably and happily. (The endless vacations, golf, food, and consumption? Well, maybe not so much – but that’s just your to-be-expected “immaturity” talking. As you get older, reality will hopefully sink in, and it won’t hurt too much – you’ll find happiness in the tradeoffs, if you’re growing!)</p>

<p>Some jobs, just right off the top of my head without too much thinking, that allow for a non-routine life, some free time, some adventure … pilot, forest ranger, air ambulance nurse, military officer (depending on your specialty), importer/exporter, professor, naturalist, etc. Those are just right off the top of my head as I type. There are many, many more! </p>

<p>Of course, you will have to pay your dues before you reach the levels of autonomy and financial stability that you’re looking for. But you can certainly have fun along the way.</p>

<p>And you don’t have to worry yet that you don’t know what you want to do. The majority of kids don’t know what they want to do when they head off to college.</p>

<p>If you’re really at a loss, may I suggest that you just pick a handful of schools (the usual mix - reaches, matches, and safeties) that offer a range of things you’re interested in, both academically and extracurricularly, and then attend your favorite of those that are available to you, and have fun while you work and study! I can tell you’re smart. You’ll be exposed to all sorts of things along the journey that you never even thought of … and you’ll hopefully find what floats your boat – if you’re fully participating in your college experience. At the end of 4-5 years, you’ll at the very least have a few leads on the direction you want to take, and then you’ll put one foot in front of the other and take it. College is the place to learn what it is you want to do and how you’re going to start getting there. It’s going to come together for a thinker like you, I’m pretty sure.</p>

20

<p>Hah, many great ideas, insights etc. I’d say if you don’t have any children, your financial well beings would be many times better.</p>