The 5 Great Myths of Career Change - Myth 4

July 24th, 2010

Myth 4: There is a perfect career for you

I went to the Identity Project at the Wellcome Collection recently, which featured Francis Galton, Charles Darwins cousin, who founded the first genetics laboratory. Galton was famous for inventing the fingerprint, but his research papers also included the gloriously titled Arithmetic by smell, 3 Generations of lunatic cats and Cutting a cake on scientific principles.

I see a lot of people who wonder which career would be best for them. Many expect one of those online career tests that match them to their perfect career.

But in my experience, people feel more like Galton. They are complex and multi-faceted. They cant fit into a box and often feel like there may be lots of best careers. (Mind you, what would I know? The computer told me I should have been a Dental Hygienist).

Mythbuster:
When someone wants to find their perfect career, very often what they are really asking for is a guarantee of success. So lets bite the bullet here:

There is no perfect career. Even generic advice like do what you love is not right for everyone. The things we value in life often conflict for example career success often conflicts with family life. So careers will always involve some risk, some compromise.

The alternative approach:
Given this, why on earth would anyone see a career psychologist? Quite simply, because you still have a choice to make.

So if you dont make a conscious choice, youll make an unconscious one. Unless we prioritise the things that really matter, the things that dont matter tend to take priority.

Whilst it's possible to de-risk a career choice, we can't guarantee it. The best we can do is clarify and prioritise what we actually want from life by focusing objectively on our strengths, skills, personality, interests and values and by imagining what it might be like to design a life around these. Doing this, it is possible to create a life that fits who you are. You'll still feel torn between options and values but that's life - and at least you'll be making a conscious choice.

The alternative is to drift through your life, anxious about the future, resenting the present.