The modified excerpt below is taken from: Pink, Daniel H. (2008). The adventures of Johnny Bunko: the last career guide you’ll ever need. Penguin. Image by ginkaewicons.
Career decisions
There is no pre-determined career plan and therefore you need to make smart choices.
You can make career decisions for two different types of reasons. On the one hand, you can do something for instrumental reasons: for the money or because you think it’s going to lead to something else, regardless of whether you enjoy it or think it’s worthwhile. Alternatively, you can do something for fundamental reasons, because you think it’s inherently valuable, regardless of what it may or may not lead to.
Instrumental reasons
Instrumental reasons usually don’t work. Sooner or later you are likely to underperform as willpower is not enough to sustain high performance. Also, next steps on the career ladder are too unpredictable, especially when you are not working in a social environment that suits your character. So you end up stuck.
Fundamental reasons
The most successful people — not all of the time, but most of the time — make decisions for fundamental reasons. They take a job or join a company because it will let them do interesting work in a cool place — even if they don’t know exactly where it will lead.
Trial and error
The above also means that even when you make fundamental decisions, a career involves trial and error. You have to be willing to make mistakes. Commit errors from which the benefits of what you’ve learned exceed the costs of the ‘screw-up’. Each time you make a mistake, you crystalize your ambitions and you move a little closer to your life goals. For example, failed business ventures could still help you to develop digital and marketing skills which will be highly useful once you come up with a business idea that has profitable market.
Discussion
What is your take on the above advice? Use the discussion guide prepared by Daniel Pink to reflect on the different lessons presented in his book and on IWANTTHEWORLD: student version / business version.
Go to article 3.2 ‘Make prototypes of your future scenarios‘.