To find work you love, don't follow your passion | Benjamin Todd | TEDxYouth@Tallinn
TLDRThe speaker discusses the common advice of 'following your passion' for career choice, arguing it often leads to failure due to a mismatch between personal interests and job market realities. Instead, they advocate for a career approach based on 'doing what's valuable,' which involves identifying skills in demand, exploring the world, and applying those skills to solve significant social problems. This strategy not only benefits society but also leads to personal fulfillment and success, as supported by empirical research and personal anecdotes.
Takeaways
- 🎓 The speaker graduated from university without a clear career path and faced the challenge of choosing a career amidst many interests.
- 🥋 Early interests in martial arts were not pursued as a career, highlighting the complexity of aligning passion with a professional path.
- 📚 A philosophy degree was also discarded due to the lack of job prospects and a philosopher's own critique of the field as 'empty ideas'.
- 💰 An interest in finance was considered but dismissed due to concerns about the lack of societal impact and fulfillment.
- 🤔 The speaker grappled with the question of how to choose a fulfilling career and sought answers through books and career advisors.
- 📈 The decision to found '80000hours' stemmed from the desire to research and provide guidance on career choices that make a social impact.
- 🔍 The organization '80000hours' aims to help individuals conduct serious research on career choices to maximize their professional life's value.
- 👎 The speaker argues that traditional career advice, such as 'follow your passion,' is insufficient and can lead to failure.
- 📊 Data was presented to challenge the effectiveness of following one's passion, showing a mismatch between passions and available jobs.
- 💡 A new perspective is offered: 'Do what's valuable,' focusing on developing skills that can make a positive impact on the world.
- 🌟 The speaker emphasizes that doing valuable work not only benefits the world but also leads to personal fulfillment and happiness.
- 🛠️ Practical steps are suggested for a valuable career path: explore, acquire in-demand skills, and apply them to solve significant social problems.
- 🤝 The importance of altruism in career choices is highlighted, suggesting that focusing on helping others can lead to a more meaningful and successful career.
- 👴 A thought experiment is presented to encourage thinking about the legacy of one's career and the value of an altruistic approach to work.
Q & A
What dilemma did the speaker face after graduating from university?
-The speaker faced the dilemma of choosing a career path from their many interests, such as martial arts and philosophy, and was unsure of how to turn these interests into a fulfilling job.
What was the speaker's initial interest in finance and why did they hesitate to pursue it as a career?
-The speaker was interested in investing and finance, having invested in gold as a teenager. However, they hesitated because they felt that a career in finance might not make as much of a positive difference in society and thus might not be fulfilling.
What question did the speaker grapple with regarding their career choice?
-The speaker grappled with the question, 'How could I choose a fulfilling career?' They were unsure about what they would be good at and which areas had a great social need where they could make a difference.
What did the speaker do instead of choosing a career immediately?
-Instead of choosing a career immediately, the speaker founded an organization called '80000hours' dedicated to researching the question of which career to choose.
What is the main focus of the '80000hours' organization?
-The '80000hours' organization focuses on researching and providing guidance on how to choose a fulfilling career by publishing findings and offering a free online careers guide at 80000hours.org.
What is the speaker's critique of the common career advice to 'follow your passion'?
-The speaker critiques the advice to 'follow your passion' by arguing that it often leads to failure, as most people's passions do not align with the limited number of jobs available in those fields. Moreover, even if one is successful in their passion, it might not lead to a fulfilling career if the work lacks meaning.
What alternative career advice does the speaker propose instead of 'follow your passion'?
-The speaker proposes the alternative advice 'Do what's valuable,' which means focusing on getting good at something that genuinely helps others and makes the world a better place.
According to the speaker, what are the two key ingredients for a fulfilling career identified by Professor Martin Seligman?
-The two key ingredients for a fulfilling career identified by Professor Martin Seligman are achievement or mastery, which means getting really good at something, and meaning or purpose, which involves striving to do something greater than just personal happiness.
What personal realization did the speaker have about the relationship between doing what's valuable and finding passion?
-The speaker realized that focusing on doing what's valuable led to a more fulfilling career than following their initial passions. By concentrating on making a difference, they found clear, concrete, meaningful goals and developed a passion for their work.
What are the three practical steps the speaker suggests for finding a valuable career?
-The three practical steps suggested by the speaker are: 1) Explore and learn about the world to discover what is valuable, 2) Acquire skills that are in demand and can be applied to various areas, and 3) Apply these skills to solve the most pressing social problems, especially those that have been neglected by others.
How does the speaker encourage individuals to think about their career in the context of their life's impact?
-The speaker encourages individuals to envision their life's impact on their deathbed, comparing the legacy of a career focused on personal success versus one dedicated to making a difference in the world, to highlight the importance of choosing a career that is valuable and fulfilling.
Outlines
🤔 The Dilemma of Choosing a Fulfilling Career
The speaker begins by sharing their personal struggle with choosing a career after university, reflecting on various interests such as martial arts and philosophy, and the challenges of turning these into a job. They express concerns about the practicality and societal impact of a career in finance. The speaker's quest for a meaningful career led to the founding of '80000hours,' an organization aimed at researching how to make the best use of one's working life. The speaker critiques the traditional advice of 'following your passion' and suggests that a more impactful approach is needed to find a fulfilling career.
📉 The Pitfalls of Following Your Passion
The speaker challenges the common career advice of 'follow your passion' by presenting data that shows the limited job market in areas people are typically passionate about, such as sports, arts, and music. They argue that even if one matches their passion with their work, it does not guarantee a fulfilling career due to the potential lack of meaningfulness. The speaker also discusses the risks of burnout and early death associated with passionate individuals in certain professions, suggesting that interests are not a reliable basis for career decisions. Instead, they propose focusing on what is valuable and beneficial to society.
🌟 The Value of Doing What's Valuable
The speaker advocates for a career approach based on creating value and making a positive impact on the world, rather than solely pursuing personal interests. They argue that doing what's valuable not only benefits society but also leads to personal fulfillment and happiness. The speaker cites psychological research by Professor Martin Seligman that identifies achievement and meaning as key ingredients for a satisfying life. They encourage exploring the world, acquiring in-demand skills, and applying these skills to solve significant social problems, which can lead to a passionate and fulfilling career.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Career Choice
💡Passion
💡Philosophy
💡Investing and Finance
💡Fulfillment
💡Social Impact
💡80000hours
💡Skills
💡Career Advice
💡Altruism
Highlights
The speaker graduated from university unsure of their career path, having many interests but uncertain which to pursue.
Interest in martial arts and philosophy, but both were deemed unsuitable for a career.
Invested in gold as a teenager, showing early interest in finance, but questioned the societal impact of a finance career.
Founded '80000hours', an organization to research career choices, emphasizing the importance of career research.
The organization offers a free online careers guide at 80000hours.org.
Speaker questions the common advice to 'follow your passion' for career choice.
Historical shift in career advice from doing what parents did to focusing on passion and money.
The speaker argues that focusing on passion may not lead to a fulfilling career.
Data shows a mismatch between common passions and available jobs, suggesting following passion might lead to failure.
Interests can change over time, making them an unreliable basis for a career choice.
The speaker suggests focusing on what's valuable to society rather than personal interests.
Doing what's valuable is linked to personal fulfillment and happiness according to empirical research.
Achievement and meaning are key ingredients for a satisfying life, as per Professor Martin Seligman.
The speaker's own experience shows that focusing on valuable work can lead to passion and fulfillment.
Practical steps for a valuable career include exploring, building skills, and solving big social problems.
The speaker encourages altruism and societal contribution as a path to a meaningful career.
A thought experiment about reflecting on one's career from the perspective of the end of life.
The speaker concludes that doing what's valuable leads to a fulfilling and passionate career.
Transcripts
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