Choosing a Job, or letting it choose you?

Ok, so you’ve figured out where you wish to be in a few years from now (professionally).

The absolute first step is of course….. getting a job.

I’ve done three kinds of job in my career so far:

1.     My ideal/dream job - Through my career I landed some roles were the perfect fit to advance my professional standing and keep me interested. These roles drove my career trajectory and I loved them.

2.     A manageable job – These I took because I needed money and to solidify my career in a profession. Either the role or the company did not inspire me, but they did pay the bills while making ‘career sense’. When I look back over my CV they were useful and don’t look out of place.

3.     A job for survival - I took some roles out of necessity, to make money and provide a roof over my head. I was a store-man, a retail assistant and call centre agent at various stages of my career. In some countries ‘Uber’ driving now covers this need for many – a source of flexible and temporary income between career jobs. I know a number of senior executives who have used Uber driving to keep money coming in while between roles or while starting up their own businesses. Not the jobs you’ll see us list on LinkedIn - we tend to describe these phases as running our own ‘Consulting Firms’.

You should be clear on what job will help you achieve your short-term goals. It could be to gather experience, to network or a host of many other things. Your choice of jobs should be specific and tailored to giving you the skills you need to actually succeed in the career path you have chosen. You might also consider internships, volunteering and other forms of work experience schemes to gather valuable experience. These opportunities would show you what you need to learn, as well as showing you the industry or field you wish to enter. This would help you make the decision to stay in that particular field or to make a switch. This is your plans first contact with reality and you can determine if the chosen path actually suits you or if you need to make a switch.