Combining Career and Passion

 

    In my Product Design and Innovation course, I was assigned to read a chapter of the book Creative Confidence by David and Tom Kelley. The chapter I read was number five titled "Seek". What I read and learned in the chapter is eye-opening and super useful information for college students, so I figured I would share. The main idea of the chapter is to pick a career based on your passions rather than financial gain. It is definitely very easy to look at the pay rate and various benefits a job could provide and instantly accept, even if the position is not something that you are actually passionate about. I'm sure that we can all think of friends or family members who accepted a higher-paying job than their prior ones, but their happiness and satisfaction levels significantly declined. 

    As a part of the presentation, it was suggested to lead an activity for the class. For my activity, I had my peers, on a piece of paper, write what job they would probably get after graduation the front. On the back, I had them write down what their dream job would be if money was not a factor. Approximately 90% of people in the class had different things written done on the front and the back, showing that most students would choose a career path or job based on income potential rather than passion. Additionally, I had my classmates make a list of their passions, hobbies and interests and challenged them to find a way to combine the career on the front with one or more of their passion areas to get as close to the job on the back as possible.

    For my personal example, on the front of the paper I put that I will probably go into some sort of digital media, marketing, or public relations job. On the back I put that, if money was not a worry, I would want to be a fashion stylist. When thinking of my hobbies, I like to read, take photos, shop and paint. Combining my love for public relations and marketing with my love for taking photos and shopping, I could work for a fashion or beauty company managing social media accounts. I encourage everyone to do this exercise to make sure that they are continuing to pursue their passions after graduation!