Creating a Self-Directed Career

I’m going to MIT tonight for a quick pitch to their students. Yesterday, I was thinking about what I can tell their students about jobs & careers, since their grads have a very different set of issues around their careers than most people. Scarcity of employment opportunities is probably (or more like definitely) not a major issue for most of them.

But what we all share is a need to carve our own path and make an impact, which is what really leads to happiness. I wrote up this handout with some tips to create a self-directed career. It’s kind of aimed at young people starting out in their career and looking at what kinds of jobs are out there.

I’m also kind of sick of the cult of entrepreneurship and startups, although I believe very strongly in entrepreneurship. (I know this is not a very logical statement.) But what leads to life happiness in terms of careers is this feeling of ownership, autonomy; essentially liking what you do because you consciously choose to do it. It’s important to choose your own path and feel independent – I think that’s much more important in the end than entrepreneurship itself, or even than the type of role or company.