Lessons learnt from my career

In the West, the notion of career is an interesting one. Many people chart out their careers and look for meaning and satisfaction through them. Yet, thinking a little deeper, the notion of a career is elusive. What exactly defines a career?

The Oxford Learners Dictionary defines a career as

"the series of jobs that a person has in a particular area of work, usually involving more responsibility as time passes".

Hence, a career has two components. It relates to working and to the change in responsibility over time. Career seems to be a word for a dynamic, intangible and evolving entity, the working self. This leads to the question, where does a career lead? What do we look for in a career? These questions are vast and can be answered in many ways. I offer a view in light of finding a path which brings about sustainable, healthy development. I also look at some unhelpful ways to approach a career, which I have personally tried and have found to lead to negative consequences.

Think of the possible career choices as the branches of a tree. Photo by Brandon Green on Unsplash

A common way to view a career is for the maximisation of personal gain. This point of view proposes that one uses one's life energy to accumulate wealth, accumulate skills and acquire success. This framework for seeing a career is driven by the desires of the self. Self realisation is rewarding and feels good. The notion of progress, of elevated social status and of economic affluence is attractive. What is the problem with this type of thinking? It encourages the individual to act selfishly and competitively, seeing other people as obstacles to their success. If unbounded, the desires of the self leave little room for noble feeling of helping others through our careers. This type of self struggles to connect to others. Given that there is a well defined goal in sight, feelings of frustration towards barriers along the way lead to impatience. Fear of loosing what has already been accumulated arises. Given the limitations of the purely self-focused career path, is there a sustainable, value-based alternative, which allows us to function within this economic system?

One approach is to consider the notion of a career in broader terms. Besides economic wealth, what else do human beings need in the professional sphere of life? Social connections and purpose are fundamental for finding well-being in our professional lives. A career which incorporates both heathy, meaningful social connections and work whose impact aligns with one's deeper values is worthwhile pursuing. Which deeper values am I referring to? These tend to vary from one individual to another yet for me they include helping to reduce the suffering of other human beings and the environmental burden on the planet. Even when pursuing what appear to us to be noble causes, we can fall into the same pitfalls as when pursuing personal gain. Attachment to results and anxiety to achieve high levels of impact can make this type of career a living hell. Even being a PhD student, working to extend human knowledge in cardiovascular science, I was frustrated, burnt-out and unsatisfied because I had unrealistic expectations. I was not accepting the limitations of the technology and the limitations of my own abilities. This resistance led to working in a rushed way, constantly chasing the next goal, without stopping to appreciate the present moment and milestones along the way. So, if we have deep values and care about making an impact in the world, how can we do so in a sustainable and healthy way?

The first realisation is to get refrain from setting very rigid targets and timeframes. While it is helpful for the general direction of the work to be defined, refrain from setting hard timeframes or planning the work to the minutest detail. Over-planning stifles creativity and makes us have continuously live in the future, trying to meet our expectations. Given that we cannot possibly predict how a project will unravel, it is best to define the desired outcomes and be flexible with them along the way, adapting them as new information becomes available. Very importantly, do not judge or resent yourselves if you do not meet the initial goals. Focus on what you have learnt in the process when you review your progress.

Secondly, develop mindfulness of thoughts and emotions. Mindfulness allows us to see how our thoughts and feelings arise in a causal way, finally letting them go instead of getting caught up in them. I have noticed that this skill can be learnt over time and is incredibly valuable to clear one's mind.

Thirdly, you can focus on how your work impacts and serves others. Our mind has the tendency to loosen up when we acknowledge that our work serves a higher purpose than fulfilling our own needs. Alongside this, allocating time for curiosity is essential. If you follow the above advice of setting loosely defined goals, this should give you the mental space to find the time to be curious and inquisitive, to learn new concepts and skills along the way.

Acceptance of the fact that the outcomes are out of our control is an important realisation. This is why it is wise not to imagine success as the outcome at the end of a project. It is more useful to focus on the opportunity to learn, on the opportunity to interact and to contribute rather than on the end goal. Taking success and lack of it with equanimity is incredibly empowering. It allows us to develop resilience and be immune to the outcomes, reducing the ups and downs perceived as a result of career milestones.

Finally, herein I share my reflections on what makes a career flow, how to flourish within a field encourage you to avoid from solely focusing on personal gains, as I do not see the latter as helpful for one's well-being. I also encourage you to think and not neglect your financial goals, as they form part of a healthy career.