We’ve all heard stories like that of the young girl who played every day with her toy stethoscope and grew up to be a famous brain surgeon, or the little boy who loved to beat on pots and pans and eventually became a famous drummer. Unfortunately, most of us aren’t among the select few lucky individuals who were born knowing what we wanted to do with our lives.
It’s far more common to follow a circuitous path in your life and career until you wind your way to the perfect job for you. If you’re on such a path, perhaps you’ve overlooked some options available to you. You’ve likely picked up a host of transferable skills that would be applicable to a wide range of job opportunities. Here are a few ideas of positions you may not have considered and the characteristics necessary to succeed in those fields.
Truck driver
Contrary to what you may think at first glance, driving a truck professionally requires a wide range of skills outside the obvious one: being able to pilot an 18-wheeler. You must also exhibit good organizational skills in order to keep track of your manual or electronic driver log; good time management abilities; a professional manner; and a love of travel. No two days will be the same as a commercial truck driver, so this is a great job for those with a restless spirit who are excited by the notion of seeing the world through a windshield.
Teacher
Your degree may not be in education, and you may not have set foot in a classroom since college. But if you’ve experienced success as a corporate trainer or if your friends compliment you on your extraordinary patience and your clear way of explaining things, you might be well-suited to a career as a teacher. Many states offer grants and accelerated education programs to help would-be educators earn their teaching licenses quickly, so consider this path if you’re truly passionate about education.
Self-Employment
Working as your own boss is the ultimate in freedom—you make your own schedule, answer only to yourself and get to make all the decisions—as well as responsibility: You have only yourself to blame if something goes wrong. Of course, there are any number of paths you could follow as a self-employed individual—open a tech start-up, cut hair, become a freelance writer—but ultimately they all require an extraordinary amount of self-discipline and an ability to stay organized and focused. Self-employment is for you if you can set and adhere to a schedule, design and meet goals and be unafraid to try new things if necessary in order to succeed.
Ultimately, of course, all jobs have their pros and cons and no career choice is perfect. The most important consideration is what will be the best fit for you personally, and to work outward from there. You’ll know you’re on the right path when you feel invested in your work—and hopefully every day won’t really feel like work anymore.
Originally posted on July 29, 2013 @ 1:40 pm