People choose and enjoy different careers for different reasons, which may sometimes be difficult for others to relate to. For instance, my loved ones freak out when they see excerpts of a particularly badly written article or book I’m editing. “How do you cope? I would run mad!” They find it hard to understand how I can find joy in correcting, rearranging and polishing other peoples’ writing. It’s the same way I find it hard to understand how people spend their lives managing other peoples’ finances and find fulfillment in that.
There are so many reasons people mention when it comes to selecting their chosen careers. Here are just four:
1. Helping others: From customer care executives to medical personnel, being of help to others and finding solutions for their problems is extremely fulfilling for many. Replacing frowns with smiles, tears with laughter, pain with relief, and generally leaving people better than they were when they came, is what they live for. Many personal assistants, wedding planners, physical trainers, bridal makeup artists, nannies and priests/pastors enjoy being able to contribute to someone’s happiness and make a difference in at least one person’s life every so often, even when the pay is not as much as they would like.
2. Money: As cold as it may sound compared to 1 above, this is simply the reality for many. They need money, and the pay in that field is good, so they take it and rely on other things like hobbies for deep fulfillment. For many, it’s not that they hate their field or their job; they simply know that they wouldn’t be doing it was it not for the fat salary. Being able to fulfill their many financial commitments and responsibilities, and to enjoy some of life’s luxuries, is important to them, and they are willing to sacrifice for it.
3. Flexibility: There are people who value having their own time so much that a career or a job is attractive simply because of how little time they need to spend at it or how little it restricts them. For instance, teaching or working as a school administrator may not be the highest paying job, but the sizeable chunk of time that end-of-term holidays provide thrice a year (excluding the many public holidays in Nigeria that keep schools closed) attracts many to this field.
Flexibility for others comes in terms of freedom to dress casually, having control over resumption and closing time, or being able to work remotely instead of showing up at the office every day. Some shift workers find that they are able to swap shifts with their colleagues when they have to be away, and they love that.
4. Fun: Some people are actually fortunate enough to find jobs that they have fun doing. For them, being able to do work that they enjoy, be it research, TV presenting or scriptwriting, is what makes a career attractive.
Whatever the attraction may be, we can all agree that finding a job you love is an extra blessing in these times when unemployment rates are at an all-time high in our country.
Read also: 4 Job Trends That Should Be Embraced in Nigeria
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You can say that again, Joy. Sometimes, we wish we could have all four reasons.