I’m very lucky. Passionate, dedicated, and meaningful.
These are the words I use to describe how I feel about what I’ve been doing every day for the past 22 years. When talking about what I do, which is helping people to pursue and achieve their career success, I simply tell others that it’s what I was meant to do.
It didn’t start out this way though. For the first 10 years of my career (counting my university degree), I did something I had no passion for and little dedication towards. I studied mechanical engineering and became an R&D design engineer for a major toy company (Mattel). Actually, doing R&D or engineering design work, and making toys for a living, are great careers for many people. Just not for me.
So I began searching for what I would enjoy more, with no idea what that might be. After eight years, I found it. There are several key things I did during my search that I’ve written about in another article that I’ll mention later. But here are two big things I’ll highlight now.
1) Three elements – The most important thing I did? Point myself in a direction that was true and consistent with what I care about and am most interested in. But early in your career, it’s nearly impossible to identify what it is that you want to do. What do you know about the real world yet? What experience and exposure do you have so far to tell you what possibilities and options are out there, or even what something is really about?
So I thought about what I call my three elements, or three things I most wanted to be part of any job or career situation I pursued. By identifying and then always keeping these elements in mind, you’ll avoid job and career situations that you’re not that interested in and that aren’t that meaningful to you, and better pursue ones that are.
For example, these are the three elements I identified for myself back in my mid-20s.
1) Business – Although I didn’t understand it well, I was much more interested in the business world than engineering/manufacturing world. I liked the whole idea of building something that benefited or provided value to others. I was also very interested in the things that it took to achieve this, like leadership, strategic thinking, and marketing.
2) Helping people – As an R&D design engineer, I sat in front of a computer most of the day. Not what I wanted to do. Although I was shy, I liked talking to people. And doing things that helped others energized and brought out the best in me. So whatever I pursued for my career, I wanted it to involve dealing with people and doing something that impacted the lives of others.
3) China – I’ve written about this before, but my first time to China changed my life. I always refer to the trip as, an awakening. During the trip, I felt a sense of pride, appreciation, and humility about being Chinese that I’d never felt before in the U.S. Although I didn’t speak Mandarin and knew little about Chinese society and culture, I knew I wanted to be a part of this country’s development and future someday.
It took me a couple months of pondering and soul-searching to identify my three elements. But once I did, they gave me a clear sense of what was most important to me and the direction I wanted to go. Look at my career over the years and you’ll see these elements in every job move and career decision I’ve made.
By always keeping them in mind, I’ve avoided jobs that offered more money and with famous companies that, ultimately, weren’t the right fit for me. They’ve also helped me choose jobs and join companies that I never thought I’d be interested in or even consider. Being an entrepreneur and in the recruitment and talent industry here for 20+ years are good examples. Turns out, these fit my three elements extremely well.
So what I highly recommend is, identify the three elements that you hope can always be part of what you pursue for your career.
2) They’re not you! – A big reason many people end up in jobs and careers that don’t fit them is because they listened to the advice of someone else. Usually, it’s your parents, relatives, teachers, friends, or colleagues who genuinely care about your success and happiness, and are sincere in their career advice to you.
But here’s the thing about career advice. Be open to it, and appreciate anyone who takes an interest in your success and future. But also remember, they’re not you. First of all, nobody should know you better than yourself. Especially, what you like/dislike, enjoy doing/don’t enjoy doing, and care/don’t care about. Job and career decisions aren’t about good or bad, right or wrong. They’re relative to what’s important to you!
Second, giving career advice is easy. But follow someone’s advice that ends up being wrong, it’s not them who has to show up at a job or company they don’t like, or do something every day that they don’t enjoy. It’s you. They can just go, “Oh well, I guess I was wrong.” But you’re the one who has to suffer the consequences of your bad decision, based on their advice.
And finally, nobody forces you to take a certain job or pursue a certain career. These are your decisions. So to end up doing something you like, be mature enough to recognize that, it’s your career, your responsibility. Make job and career decisions that you believe fit you, and aren’t based on someone else’s idea of what might.
In my case, my dad’s an engineer who wanted me to become an engineer too. That’s why I chose engineering. In addition, my mom, who’s in public health, wanted me to become a doctor. My uncle’s a lawyer who thought I’d make a good lawyer too. My previous boss loved the IT industry, so was always mentioning IT opportunities to me. Their advice was all reasonable, just not the right for me. What ended up being right for me is what I do now, which is based on my own view of myself and what kind of success I want to achieve for my career and in my life.
I recently posted another Zhihu article, How A Person With No Passion In His Career Pursued And Found His Passion <How A Person With No Passion In His Career Pursued And Found His Passion> (English version is below Chinese version). In it, I highlighted a few other key things that will help you find what you really want to do. For instance, leaving what you have no passion for, talking to as many people as you can, overcoming “the fear”, and enjoying the journey. In the end, there are no magic answers, no quick and easy processes for getting into the right career situation for yourself. It’s a result of the overall career decisions and specific job choices you make, and your determination to pursue what’s most suited for you.
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