How To Decide On A Career

Dan Lok
31 Oct 201809:31
EducationalLearning
32 Likes 10 Comments

TLDRThe speaker shares his personal journey and insights on choosing the right career path. He emphasizes the importance of trying various activities to identify one's true interests and passions. Initially motivated by financial needs, he explored different careers before finding his niche in business and education. He advises starting with a profitable career to secure financial stability, then seeking to combine it with passion. The ultimate goal is to find a purpose that aligns with both passion and profit, leading to a fulfilling and successful life. He encourages individuals to find their unique path, as he feels fortunate to have found his own.

Takeaways
  • 🤔 **Choosing the Right Career**: Picking the right career is crucial as it can significantly impact your life and time.
  • 💡 **Trial and Error**: Trying different things is essential to discovering what you're truly passionate about and good at.
  • 👨‍👩‍👧 **Family Influence**: Be aware of the influence of family and friends when choosing a career, ensuring it aligns with your personal interests.
  • 💼 **Financial Stability First**: Prioritize financial stability before pursuing passion to ensure you can support yourself and your family.
  • 🏋️‍♂️ **Physical Limitations**: Consider your physical abilities and limitations when choosing a career path, such as sports.
  • 🎨 **Elimination Process**: Use an elimination process to discard activities or careers that don't suit you, like the speaker did with painting.
  • 👮 **Different Aspirations**: Recognize that aspirations change over time and what you want to be as a child may differ from your adult goals.
  • 💰 **Profit Before Passion**: Focus on making a profit first, as financial security can provide the freedom to later pursue your passion.
  • 🌏 **Cultural Differences**: Understand that cultural perspectives on work and passion vary, with some cultures prioritizing financial success over personal fulfillment.
  • 📈 **Combining Profit and Passion**: Aim to combine profit with passion to achieve both financial success and personal satisfaction.
  • 🌟 **Finding Your Purpose**: Ultimately, finding a career that aligns with your purpose can lead to a deeply fulfilling life.
Q & A

  • What is considered one of the most important decisions in life according to the speaker?

    -Picking the right career is considered one of the most important decisions in life because choosing the wrong career can lead to wasting a lot of time and years.

  • Why did the speaker initially want to make money?

    -The speaker initially wanted to make money to provide for his mother after his father went bankrupt and could no longer send them money.

  • What is the first piece of advice the speaker gives to young people unsure about their perfect career?

    -The first piece of advice is to try enough things, as it's an elimination process that helps one to quickly identify what they are not interested in or good at.

  • How does the speaker describe the process of finding the right career?

    -The speaker describes the process as a zigzag journey, involving trying many different things until one finds their place and what they were meant to do.

  • What is the speaker's perspective on focusing solely on passion when choosing a career?

    -The speaker believes that focusing solely on passion can lead to financial struggles. Instead, one should first focus on making a profit, which provides more choices and the ability to invest in oneself.

  • How does the speaker's approach to career differ between Asian and North American cultures?

    -In Asian culture, the focus is on making money and working long hours, whereas in North America, there is a more laid-back approach with an emphasis on finding one's calling and passion.

  • What does the speaker suggest as the first step in choosing a career?

    -The speaker suggests starting with profit, finding something that can make you money, and getting the financial aspect out of the way first.

  • What is the speaker's view on the combination of profit and passion in a career?

    -The speaker believes that combining profit with passion is ideal. Loving what you do leads to better performance and increased profitability.

  • At what age did the speaker find their purpose?

    -The speaker found their purpose when they were 30 years old.

  • What does the speaker consider as the ultimate goal in a career?

    -The ultimate goal, according to the speaker, is to combine purpose, passion, and profit into one's career.

  • What is the speaker's advice for someone who is trying to decide on their career?

    -The speaker advises starting with profit, then finding passion through that process, and eventually, if possible, turning that passion into a purpose.

  • How does the speaker describe the feeling of having found their ideal career?

    -The speaker describes it as very special and feels very grateful for being able to live every day following their passion, making a profit, and living their purpose.

Outlines
00:00
🤔 Choosing the Right Career Path

The speaker emphasizes the importance of selecting the correct career, which is crucial as it can lead to wasted time and effort if chosen incorrectly. He shares his personal journey, starting with the need to provide for his family after his father's bankruptcy. Initially, he was focused on earning money rather than finding his passion. Through trial and error, he explored various career options, including law, firefighting, and martial arts instruction, before discovering his true calling in business and education. The speaker advises that trying different things is essential to understanding what one is not interested in, leading to the discovery of one's true passion.

05:00
💰 Prioritizing Profit Before Passion

The speaker discusses the significance of financial stability before pursuing passion. He suggests that focusing on a career that generates profit is the first step, as it provides the freedom to invest in oneself and one's interests. He contrasts the Asian and North American perspectives on work and passion, highlighting the Asian emphasis on financial success. He then shares his own approach to finding a career that is both profitable and fulfilling. The speaker stresses the importance of mastering one's craft and becoming good at what one loves to do. He concludes by stating that finding a career that aligns with one's passion, purpose, and profitability is a rare and fortunate achievement.

Mindmap
Keywords
💡Career
A career is a professional occupation or a series of jobs that one undertakes throughout their working life. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of choosing the right career, as it can significantly impact one's life satisfaction and financial stability. The narrative illustrates the speaker's journey through various career considerations before finding his ideal path.
💡Millennials
Millennials are the generation born between the early 1980s and the mid-1990s to early 2000s. The speaker mentions millennials to highlight the demographic that is often grappling with career choices and the challenges of finding meaningful work in a competitive job market.
💡Passion
Passion refers to a strong interest or enthusiasm for a particular subject or activity. The speaker discusses the concept of passion in relation to career, suggesting that while it's important, it should not be the sole factor in choosing a career. He shares his personal experience of discovering his passion for teaching and speaking only after establishing a profitable career.
💡Profit
Profit is the money retained by a business after deducting its operating and investment costs. It is a key concept in the video as the speaker advises starting with a focus on profit to secure financial stability before pursuing one's passion. He argues that financial success can provide the freedom to then invest in one's interests and passions.
💡Purpose
Purpose is the reason for which something exists or is done, often used to describe a sense of meaningfulness in one's life or career. The speaker talks about finding his purpose as a global educator and how it aligns with his passion and profit, creating a fulfilling career.
💡Legacy
Legacy refers to something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past. The speaker contemplates his legacy in terms of how he wants to be remembered after his death, expressing a desire to have a lasting impact on people's lives rather than just being known for his financial success.
💡Elimination Process
The elimination process is a method of identifying what one does not want by systematically ruling out options. In the context of the video, the speaker uses this concept to describe how trying various activities helped him understand what he did not want in a career, thus narrowing down his choices.
💡Financial Stability
Financial stability is a state where an individual or a business has a secure financial footing, with enough savings and income to cover expenses and withstand economic fluctuations. The speaker stresses the importance of financial stability as a foundation upon which one can then pursue their passions.
💡Cultural Differences
Cultural differences refer to the variations in customs, traditions, and values between different societies or groups. The speaker discusses the contrasting approaches to career and passion between Asian and North American cultures, highlighting the different priorities each places on financial success versus personal fulfillment.
💡Zigzag Path
A zigzag path describes a non-linear or indirect route to a destination, often involving changes in direction. The speaker uses this term to describe his career journey, which involved many changes and explorations before finding his true calling.
💡Global Educator
A global educator is someone who provides educational services or content on an international scale. The speaker identifies himself as a global educator, which aligns with his passion for teaching and his ability to impact many lives across the world.
Highlights

Picking the right career is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make

Choosing the wrong career can lead to wasting valuable time and years

The speaker initially just wanted to make money to provide for his mom

Now the speaker has the greatest job in the world with flexibility and impact

To find the right career, try many different things until you find what you're passionate about

It's an elimination process - quickly rule out things you're not good at or don't enjoy

The speaker's dad wanted him to be a lawyer, but he realized it wasn't his path

The speaker briefly wanted to be a firefighter like his uncle, but it wasn't for him

After learning martial arts, the speaker thought he wanted to be an instructor, but it wasn't profitable enough

The speaker stumbled upon business, copywriting, consulting, speaking, etc. and found his place

Focus on finding a career that generates profit first, then you can focus on what's truly important

In Asian culture, the focus is on making money first, while in North America it's more about finding your passion

Once you're making good money, find something you're passionate about and get better at it

Combining profit and passion leads to even greater profit and fulfillment

At 30, the speaker found his true purpose and legacy - changing people's lives as a global educator

When you can combine purpose, passion, and profit, you've found your ideal career

Start with profit, then find your passion, and eventually it may become your purpose if you're lucky

No one can tell you your path - you have to find it yourself, but start with these recommendations

Transcripts

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Career AdvicePassion PursuitFinancial StabilityLife LessonsPersonal GrowthEntrepreneurshipEducational ImpactCultural PerspectivesLegacy BuildingSuccess Stories