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Careers as Arranged Marriages

by: Lisa Taylor

Last week I read an interesting article written by Jeff Haden. Its headline asked: “Is your profession like an arranged marriage?” The article described how it feels to turn around 15 or 20 years into a career and realize that it was a path chosen for you rather than one that you chose for yourself. The pattern starts like this: Parents help chose your academic path, which leads to a first job and, over time, develops into a whole career all predetermined by actions from before you really even knew what you wanted.

I know just what Jeff means.

Fifteen years ago I graduated and joined a public policy consultancy. On my first day I was told that I had been transferred into the IT consulting practice. Twelve years later I found myself running one of the largest IT consulting practices in the country with a resume and network that clearly indicated that I am a techie. Except that I am not. It was certainly an arranged marriage, one that was happy and productive, but not one of my choosing.

Leaving one profession for another is not easy. We are programmed to move up the corporate ladder, along the rungs that have been set out for us by our profession, our company or our network’s expectations. However, just because you’ve been a lawyer for the last 15 years doesn’t mean you need to continue in private practice forever. Or, in my case, having a strong, successful career in one industry doesn’t require me to remain in the box that I had been placed.

Most frequently, clients admit that they are overwhelmed with the risk and complexity involved with making career decisions, so they often decide to delay doing anything. Does this sound like you, too? Year after year you find yourself talking with family and friends about how you wish you could make a change. If only you knew what you wanted to do next and how you were going to be able to make the transition with your network, reputation, finances and lifestyle intact.

In fact, people in any job can put together a plan that identifies a career that combines what you love with what you are good at while still meeting you and your family’s practical needs. It just takes a bit of planning and a broadening of your perspective.

It is also helpful to remember that adults learn best from experience. If your current career is the only one you’ve ever experienced it can be hard to imagine what else you could or should do. This need to learn from personal experience is why Challenge Factory works with clients to give them a “day in the life” of the career or job they determine is next for them. It is the only way to know in your gut if the decision you are making is the right one.

The fall is the perfect time to set goals related to career change. Laying the groundwork now means that you can enter 2012 with very exciting and realistic New Year’s resolutions related to your work. If you recognize that your profession feels like an arranged marriage you have already taken the first step. Let’s talk about how you can find more meaningful work. After all, it’s your career. What are you waiting for? 
Jeff Haden: Is Your Career Like an Arranged Marriage? BNET Sept. 7, 2011

Posted in: Career