We define ourselves by what we do for a living.
Our career reflects innate abilities, goals, creativity, attitudes toward others and a host of other mysterious variables. In the skewed path to fulfillment, it's human nature to taste many jobs and experiment with new careers before we settle on something we are passionate about. The best we can strive for is finding something we love doing early on so we can devote the rest of our lives to excelling at it.
Job and career changes reflect not only the times but also, more importantly, a natural inclination to dabble and learn—so say career coaches John Agno and Rick Gee.
Looking back upon how his own life and career fell into place, Agno discovered this fact of life firsthand. He changed jobs every seven years before settling into a career he was passionate about: coaching senior technology executives—CTOs, CIOs and CEOs.
Along with a growing number of workplace advisers, Agno and Gee concur that there is no defined path to any professional career.
Gee adds that the entire notion of the career path has gone the way of the dinosaur. "More commonly, most people will travel several paths in the course of their lifetime," says Agno. "Typically, our early years are spent gravitating toward professions or vocations that are in tune with our personalities. Career adjustments, whether they happen early or in mid-career, are normal and natural. Every accomplishment and failure prepares you for what's ahead."
Management consultant, author and motivational speaker Tom Peters says, "There is no single path to success."
And Buddha said: "Carpenters bend wood. Fletchers bend arrows. Wise men fashion themselves." It sounds a little vague, but the message is on the money: There is no telling how your life will work itself out, because there are so many things that are beyond your control.
Source: Bob Weinstein's Are Career Paths the Best for Professional Advancement? in CIO magazine, February 4, 2008
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