When Mark was 3 he dreamed of being a dinosaur. A big, scary Tyrannosaurus-Rex to be exact. When he was 10, he wanted to be a professional footballer, sharing the field with the Messi’s and Pelé’s of the world. At 20, he was young and idealistic, and having developed a passion for the arts, dreamt of roaming around New York writing for Broadway.

Interestingly, what was never present in little Mark’s dreams, at any point ever, was managing a sales team for a struggling logistics company based in Campbelltown.

I guess that’s what they say, shoot and for moon and land...in Southwestern Sydney?

Take it easy on him. Landing that dream job is hard, and most never do, but what’s even harder is figuring out what the fuck it is in the first place.

And that’s what we’re tackling today.

Where We Go Wrong

If someone asks you what your dream job is, what goes through your head?

Most of us do one of three things.

1. We try to imagine different jobs and think about how satisfying they seem.

2. We think about what we’re presently good at and guess where those skills could take us.

3. We think about times we’ve felt fulfilled and self-reflect about what matters most to us.

There’s a hope deep down that we already know what we want from our career, and we’re simply yet to discover it.

How often do you hype a party for weeks only to be let down?

What about the film you’ve anticipated for months that disappointed? 

Our gut is often wrong, and whilst it’s comforting to think otherwise, this is especially true for our careers.

Maybe moving to London isn’t the life-solving silver bullet you think it’ll be. It very well could be, but you just don’t know.

This means we can’t just trust our intuitions; we need a more systematic way of working out which job is best for us.

Should You Follow Your Passion

“Follow your passion”.

It’s an attractive pitch.

However, it’s a little misleading.

Take Mark as an example. He loves to cycle. He does it every morning on his way to work.

Would it be smart of him to quit everything and pursue his passion for cycling?

No, even if he was 20 years younger, stronger, and fitter.

Why?

Because no matter how hard he trains, how well he eats, or how long he sleeps, he probably won’t end up next to Lance Armstrong on the Tour de France.

This is why “follow your passion” isn’t exactly the best advice.

Even if you’re deeply interested in your work, you still lack many of the key ingredients that make it satisfying and fulfilling.

If a basketball fan gets a job involving basketball but works with people they hate, receives unfair pay, or finds the work meaningless, they’re still going to dislike their job. 

Further, many of us don’t feel like we have a career-related passion. Our passion may be gardening or surfing. That’s great, but how many professional gardeners do you know?

We’d also bet that the EY PowerPoint warriors aren’t exactly passionate about consulting either.

This can also make us needlessly limit our options.

If someone’s deeply interested in literature, they may think they have to become a writer to have a satisfying career, ignoring other options.

In reality, most of us don’t have “one true passion”. We change, and so do our interests. Think back to what you were most interested in five years ago, is it the same as today? Probably not.

What to Aim For in a Dream Job

There’s generally a short list of things that when ticked, make for a satisfying and meaningful career. They include:

1. Work that’s engaging

Engaging work draws you in and holds your attention. It’s the reason why an hour spent editing a spreadsheet feels like an eternity while that same hour spent on a video game flies by.

Why?

With a video game, players have freedom, they have clear tasks and objectives, they have variety, and they receive feedback to gauge progress.

2. Work that helps people

Helping others feels good, simple.

Generally, it’s nice knowing what you do for 40 hours a week does some good.

3. Work you’re good at

People become passionate about what they’re good at. It’s why so many successful people seem to love their jobs so much.

Being good at your work gives you a sense of achievement. It feels good.

It also gives you the power to negotiate for the other components of a fulfilling job — such as the ability to work on meaningful projects, undertake engaging tasks, and earn fair pay. If people value your contribution, you can ask for these conditions in return.

4. Working with supportive colleagues

Not despising your boss and colleagues is key to a satisfying work life.

However, you don’t need to be besties with everyone. 

Research shows that an important factor in job satisfaction is whether you can get help from your colleagues when you encounter problems.

Ironically, disagreeable coworkers can actually be valuable because they’ll give you direct, blunt feedback, provided they have some care about your interests.

5. Work that doesn’t have major negatives

The absence of things that make work shit is important.

You’d never guess it, but a long commute, very long hours, unfair pay, and job insecurity are all linked to work dissatisfaction.

6. Work that fits with the rest of your life

Can you see your kids?

Do you have time for a hobby?

The job itself isn’t always everything. If it pays the bills and lets you excel in areas outside of work, then it’s a win.

If you can tick a few of these boxes, hopefully, you won’t end up like Mark.

That’s it, cya.