A CAREER WITH A PURPOSE

Dear Career Doctor:

How does someone find a career with a purpose?

Kaye

Dear Kaye:

I bet you asked this question to friends and family, and they said something like, “Become a teacher because it feels great to help children learn,” or “Doctors do important work healing the sick.” While those statements are true, you are still asking your question, because whatever has been suggested isn’t something that would give YOUR life purpose.

Here’s the answer career counselors give: Every happy person feels their work has purpose – a purpose that matters to them. Yes, it is noble to be a good teacher or a good physician, but if you don’t particularly want your purpose in life to be educating children or curing illness, then those professions will not make you feel fulfilled.

The concept of fulfillment and purpose is different for every person and profession: Carpenters love building things. Homemakers feel good about raising children and keeping house. Accountants love to bring order to numbers. Computer programmers like to figure out how to solve problems – and enjoy correcting errors. People in business love to make money.

So, try to do for yourself what a career counselor would do with you: Analyze what you feel is important in life. Think about people you admire whose work seems to have purpose. Fantasize about what kind of work might make you feel good. Then go for it!

The Career Doctor