I ran across this TED talk by Emilie Wapnick called, “Why Some of Us Don’t Have One True Calling“. It resonated with me deeply. I used to consider, lucky, those whose resumes contained only one type of job role. I would think to myself, “Geesh, they really have it figured out!” We’ve been told that remaining in the same job role for long periods of time made you appear as a stable professional—not a job hopper. If one survived a layoff, one was quickly able to rebound to a similar job role in the industry. On paper—or LinkedIn—it just looked better! That’s what I wanted to do—or, so I thought. I began to feel a deep discomfort and foresaw boredom. But it made me think, am I to only limit myself to one industry or job function for the next 40 years? What is this fruit that I have bitten?
I used to feel frustrated that I did not have a singly focused career. I started off in healthcare as a skill nursing facility operations analyst. I planned to join the Healthcare Administrator in Training Program and become a healthcare administrator for the rest of my life. I wanted to help people. I had just begun my MBA; however, a few classes in, layoffs happened. I tried so hard to re-enter the field, but was turned down on every application for trainee programs. I never got an interview! Sometimes, I took it personally, but eventually I became numb to the rejection. What I knew was I never wanted a job to dictate my geographic location. I had to embrace the pivot. It was at that time, I took a leap into entrepreneurship creating a business to help the elderly while working with assisted living facilities. Had I not, I would not have realized the impact one could make on the people I wanted to help. Since then, I’ve involve myself with a variety of new and exciting opportunities to help people flourish and aspire higher.
There have been those who have spent years trying to get back into their post-graduation field. They will not work until that particular job comes available. They somehow remain on unemployment for two (sometimes three) years looking for that one opportunity. But they do not realize the cost of not temporarily stepping outside of the box.
While mastery is key, I think mastery in multiple areas are even better, there is a point where all expertise is capped. We rise to our level of incompetence, according to the Peter Principle. There is nothing more to learn and one ends up doing the same thing for the next 20 years–even after reaching the top of the profession. Everyone says master one subject. But I see how one may become pigeon-holed in ideology and stagnant thinking. At the top, strategy is vital and being able to apply Porters Five Forces and SWOT analyses require knowledge of adjacent industries and how they operate. Thus, mastery in one area can lead to innovation in another.
I think it is important to remember that as your mind expands, other people are on different wavelengths of their own expansion. What is a no-brainer to you, is enlightenment to them. Celebrate with them. But you, too, must continue to grow, learn and experience new things. Not only do you gain knowledge, you develop the ability to see the intersectionality of business disciplines and life–wisdom is cultivated. Your impact heightens and expands. No longer will you limit yourself to the “one thing”. But as you are able to solve multiple challenges, you increase your ability to add value to the world. Even people you helped in one manner can be helped in another capacity.
Never become pigeon-holed by the need to find your passion. If we would like to get metaphysical, the only purpose of most religions all is to ‘love others as you love yourself’. In fact, when asked what they want to do in life, 95% of the time people say something along the lines of ‘wanting to help others’ and ‘give back to their community’. It is the “how” which throws us off balance. Considered this way, the how can consist of many avenues. When things go my way and even when they don’t, I constantly ask God to reveal the ways I can make an impact on others during that season. It could be through a new job opportunity or even a volunteer project. Why would one spend 40-50 years of working-life searching and hoping for the “one thing”? Never limit oneself and one’s capacity to expand. Most things under the sun are learnable. If developing an app that coordinates food delivery in elderly communities while working as a McDonalds nightshift manager is burning in your spirit, then by all means figure out the way. Your life’s work is all encompassing. Desire is a seed from which many fruit will blossom.
