Over the past year, I’ve noticed one conversation keeps reoccurring among my friends – jobs and careers. Of the few of us (myself included) who work in a position that we studied for in college, there is always this kind of unspoken sentiment of “what’s the real difference between a job and a career?” Glad you asked. Of course the answer’s below.
Jobs are for making money
In a job, you simply go to work every day to make sure you can survive. There’s nothing really keeping you there besides the money you need. With a career there’s more to gain from waking up in the morning — you develop skills that prep you to move up in your company and through the career blueprint you created for yourself in college.
Jobs are a distraction
The longer you work at a job that does not fit into the scheme of what you want to do, the less likely you are to get where you really want to go. Why spend so much time not gaining the skills you need? Develop a plan to transition to the beginning of your career (i.e. your lifelong path).
Jobs don’t require passion
Do you ever get up in the morning and think “Oh gosh, another day in this stinkhole?” I won’t lie: You’ll have days in your career where you don’t feel like getting up, but they are few and far between because you’re fulfilling your larger purpose. Careers inspire you to be your best self. Jobs can give you a sense of pride, but they don’t springboard you to a new level. You invested in yourself with post-secondary education, so keep looking; Don’t settle for a job that doesn’t let you combine your know-how and passion so they pay off beyond your paycheck.
Today it’s considered an accomplishment just to make money, but the real fulfillment comes from putting your education, training and passion together to build your lifelong career. You’ll end up building your character, human capital and, yes, your bank account at the same time.