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A recent New York Times article reported a new national trend,
high school students are holding themselves back an extra year
after graduation to go to 13th grade. Their goal, to look good
on a resume. Competition to get into the Ivy League schools is
fierce. To increase their chances, high school seniors are volunteering
for community services and taking extra courses to appear as the
cream of the crop. Their philosophy: getting into the best colleges
will guarantee the best job opportunities and a brighter future.
Although the question of what college to attend is important,
it often over shadows a more critical question--what career field
to study? Students are encouraged to focus most of their energy
on getting into the best colleges, with little guidance in deciding
what they want to be when they grow up. Four years of higher
education go by fast, and the real world flies in your face at
1000 mph. The focus of this article is to help you find your
bearings in the midst of the chaos in launching your life.
Regardless of what school you went to, the real matter is
what you'll be doing everyday. Studies show that 6 in 10 recent
college grads say they probably picked the wrong major to study.
After 10 years working, people declaring they're in the wrong
field increases to about 90 percent. Once in the real world,
getting up to go to work that you don't enjoy doesn't feel so
bright and cheery, no matter how good the money is. If you're
a recent college grad, or just looking to shape up your career
for a brighter future, here are some real world quirks they probably
didn't teach you in high school or college.
The more money you have, the less you're worried about it.
Once you've built your safety net, then what? I once got
a call from a 35-year old software programmer who retired from
aol.com as a millionaire. He said, "I'm bored, and don't
want to stay in this profession anymore. I want to do something
I love." I asked, "How long have you known you didn't
like programming?" He said, "From day one! I did it
for the money." Unfortunately for most people, those million
bucks never come. The initial hope of being "fulfilled"
by a great salary wears off pretty fast; then you're stuck with
the daily grind if you don't like the functional tasks of the
work itself. Sure, money can buy you love, and even a great lifestyle.
You may be laughing all the way to the bank, but crying all the
way to work. In the real world, 40% IT professionals
say they would choose another field if they could relive their
college days; this is among the highest regret levels in any specific
occupational field. Choosing a career solely for its "trend"
value will likely put you in the club of grumpy adults who hate
their job. The quirk: a career path that inspires the same good
feelings you get after a deep laugh will likely bring you long-term
abundance on all levels.
Most professionals say they use about 5 or 10% of their
college education. Almost everyone learns his or her profession
on the job. A college degree or formal training largely serves
one main purpose, to get your foot in the door. You might think
of your diploma as a membership card to a club of like-minded
people. I've met people with no college education who are genius
at what they do, and who've found their way into rewarding careers
without the college club card. The quirk: If you're a natural
at what you do, your chances of getting into the "club"
without a diploma greatly increase. A formal education is only
one of many roads to the same end. Once you're in, few will really
care how you got there. The sparks will fly if you're innately
talented at what you do and care about the purpose of the work.
You are not a blank slate; there are certain fields of study
that will come naturally to you. It's silly to "work hard"
at a career when you can perform with grace and ease at something
that taps your inborn talent. One stipulation, "naturals"
should be willing to go against common wisdom and be really enthusiastic
about their career field. This means tons of self-study, finding
a good mentor, and totally immersing yourself into the subject
matter of your field.
One high school junior declared, "I just want a career
that will make me $100,000 a year, it doesn't matter what field
it is. I'll figure out what I really want later, after I'm rich."
He then heard a loud popping sound when I explained that most
people never get rich enough, or have time enough to figure things
out "later." That "later" usually turns out
to be never, and you'll wake up 20 years from now and say; "What
the heck did I do with my life?" Most of my older clients
wished someone had burst their bubble too, and are looking to
start over in their 40s and 50s. The chances of
your future working itself out are about the same as winning
the lottery. The quirk: Your future will look just like your past
if you don't intentional invent one for yourself. If you pay
close attention to the passage of time, you'll notice that the
"future" keeps turning into the "now" anyhow.
All you have this "moment," then the next, then the
next, and that's that. It helps to think of the future as a concept
in your mind, amuse yourself and pretend that it's not waiting
for you. A great way to have a future that you'll love is to
think backwards. That is, imagine yourself ahead in time 5 or
10 years, living an inspiring life with the perfect career. Then,
ask yourself "How did I get here?" This exercise will
reveal the first steps you'll need to take to move your life
in that direction, including whether you really need more education.
One step at a time, you'll be actively participating in the "creation"
of your future as you live into it. And the rest is history,
literally.
It's funny how the "self talk" chattering in our
minds will wreak havoc in our lives. You'll notice it more when
you dream up a great idea, suddenly you find yourself saying
just how ridiculous and unrealistic it is. Once you know the
biological purpose of these internal messages, you won't be so
fast to trust them anymore. Metaphorically, the human brain is
like very sophisticated computer with both hardware and software.
Your internal "play it safe" messages are one of the
ingenious software programs designed by Mother Nature and customized
by you to boot up every time a "perceived" danger is
present. Unlike animals that have this mechanism to avoid physical
harm, our self protect messages are largely focused on defending
our self-image. When you hear yourself say, "I can't do
what I love, it won't bring enough money to have the lifestyle
I want," you can bet that you are being bamboozled by your
software programming. The quirk: You can customize your own mental
software or "brainware." Since you wrote the original
"self-image" code, you can also rewrite your brainware
to give you more courage, help you take more chances, and open
up new doors. The first step in getting out of a rut is to listen
to what you are telling yourself, and if these messages are full
of reasons why you can't change, then it's time to do some debugging.
Your self-concept is flexible, and you're the only one who can
change it. In the words of Henry Ford, "Think you can, think
you can't; either way, you'll be right."
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To play it safe is not to play.
~Robert Altman | |
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