Finding Work That Matters

Thank you General Assembly for your kind invitation last week to be part of a very international and insightful panel to discuss an important life theme that lies close to my heart, "Finding Work That Matters".

You see, many people will tell you that an ideal career comes from following your passion. I think don’t just follow your passion, but always bring it with you.

Think of your career path as just that a path. The path for a conventional career is well-known and predictable. The path for your ideal career is foreign.

Discovering and following it requires determination and courage and a hefty amount of humility, but it does not require is a plan. Because you can’t plan a course for navigating a path unknown! Instead, what we need is a direction of travel – a rough idea of what interests you, but not one that’s so rigid you can’t adapt.

Pursue your own True North; not a destination you ever get to, but a compass for maintaining the direction you want to explore.

Then there are the traits you need to keep going in that direction. It’s always tempting to hope that the dream opportunity you’ve always wanted will fall in your lap, but that’s like winning the lottery.

If you really want to succeed, what you need is not a lottery ticket, but two key character traits: persistence and hard work. These are traits anyone can develop. Too many people think of talent as something you’re born with, not the product of hard work.

According to the Stanford University Psychologist Carol Dweck – “there are two different kinds of mindset. Those with a fixed mindset think talents are simply fixed traits and those with a growth mindset think abilities can be developed over time.

Not surprisingly, people who believe talents are fixed don’t work as hard and give up more easily. Why bother with the effort when it’s all for nothing?

The growth mindset, on the other hand, spurs people to constantly strive to improve themselves and their abilities. These people stick with it.”

Success on your path toward your own ideal career is not about being the smartest, or the most talented person. It’s about whether you’re still on the path when the next opportunity arises and for that, you need lots of persistence and hard work.

Seize every opportunity, take some risks, learn from your failures, have some fun along the way, but never stop moving.

Thank you again and looking forward to your next event in September.