10 Soul-Searching Career Questions

1. I'd like to say both..At the moment I'm poor, so having money would be nice, but I'm also doing things the people will remember, and I like that. Is it possible to do something and not have it be memorable to someone?

2. No.

3. No. I think that is impossible. Instead, I would rather be the person that does my job the best, i.e. smartest person in that department.

4. Probably in my late-twenties to early-thirties.

5. My closest colleague probably won't be my best friend. Or even a close friend. So yes, if that was needed.

6. Chef. Flight Attendant. Tour Guide in Europe. Nurse. I have plenty of careers I am interested in.

7. Versatility. You can't be an versatile without first being an expert.

8. Assuming you mean from 5am-5pm, maybe. My dream job could allow for me to be on-call, so quite possibly.

9. No. That would bore the crap out of me.

10. In my teaching, I am the boss. I don't think I'm 'feared', but I can be intimidating. So I would prefer to be the boss.

That was enjoyable. I never would have thought of these questions on my own. Thanks.

Jake,

Great questions. Thanks for getting me thinking. There is no way that I would work overnight or pick up dog poop for 60 hours a week. Meaning is way more important to me than money.

It's amazing how people can consider opposite answers to be "givens". One person's "that's so obvious" is another person's "I can't decide"

Ryan - total cop-out answer for #4. I mean, I'd like to ride a unicorn to work... That said, #4 is the hardest for me to answer, personally.

Great questions. I'd rather be memorable than wealthy, but being wealthy is relative, so it wouldn't take much for me to think that I'm.

I like this post, these are very interesting questions to consider.

RE #9: I think I would probably take that deal. Of course the work doesn't sound that appealing. But 60 hours a week isn't terrible, you'd get to be walking around outside while you work, and it would probably be a very low-stress job. And according to my calculations, we're talking about more than $1.6M per year, or more than $30,000 per week.

I'm jealous of all the commenters whose careers are either so lucrative or so enjoyable that it would take more than $1.6M per year to entice them to quit and do some mildly unpleasant task for 60 hours a week.

Thinking of what that could do for my family, or how many people I could help through charitable contributions, it seems like an offer I couldn't refuse. But then again, I really can't say I love my job, so I can see how it might be different for some people.

Jake great post. This is something I have been thinking a lot about and to see it put down in words and questions is eye opening. I think around the time I hit 24-25 and had been out of college for a few years I had this epiphany, which I am still working through, about what do I really want out of work???? And I still don't really now. I am very driven by success and still being that overachiever I have always been, however as I get older the less and less I want to put in the long hours required to climb that corporate ladder.

I really enjoy putting the time and effort into work but am getting tired of being burned and putting my time and effort into someone else's pocket, especially when they are crossing a line I find morally wrong.

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These questions are intended to be frustrating and hard. There aren't "correct" answers. Your answers will be different than the person you sit next to at work.

This is an exercise to get people to examine their careers and their goals in a new, challenging way.

If I tied it all together with advice at the end (other than "answer honestly") I would be asking leading questions, which would not be as interesting.

Like the Caesar reference at the end, btw.

Jake

Here's my answers:

1. Neither, I prefer to be respected

2. Have that right now

3. No, because there's always going to be someone smarter and I know I can learn from them.

4. Actually, it's happening right now

5. Already have had to do that, and in a couple of instances, have created hard feelings that have lasted more that 20 years.

6. Already done. Have gone from crab fishing, to military, to chemicals, to sales, to electronics, to software engineering.

7. Depth of expertise. Love to be called on to solve the "unsolveable" problems and paid handsomely to do so.

8. Already done that. Worked one job that I loved doing 3 PM to 8AM for 6 days/week for 3 years, and 11 PM to 2PM for 2 years.

9. Nope, How about crab fishing in the Bering Sea from November to February, and getting $55,000 a season?

10. Feared. It makes it easier to direct, delegate, and manage for results. :)

9. How about

1. Hmm...I guess I would rather be memorable as long as it was for something positive. I love interacting with people and being known by people.

2. I don't know that I could have a job that I didn't think about after work. Even when I worked at Six Flags as a kid, i would think about ways to do my job better when I wasn't there.

3. No, typically that person gets left out and doesn't have great social skills.

4. Can I have one each decade?

5. That would be tough. Usually I get really tight with my team. It would be really hard even if they deserved it.

6. I would go to medical school and become a doctor

7. Depth. I like to be the one who knows the most about a topic.

8. Sure, I would make it work.

9. Maybe, I barely pick it up in my yard until it really sinks but it doesn't gross me out.

10. Feared as the boss cause it gives me something to work on changing

On Question 9 - for $20 million, I would gladly eat the dog poop.

Another interesting trend - while the majority of respondants have answered "no" to #3 (the smartest person question), everyone seems to offer different reasons why it could suck to be the smartest person in the office.

It's worth it to go back through this thread and check out a few reasons. They are creative/insightful/funny

1. Wealthy, there are a lot of bad reasons to be memorable

2. No

3. Yes

4. Midway so early 40's. Gives me something to work for and time to ride out the excitement

5. Yes, if they deserved it. Not doing any favors by keeping the colleague on.

6. Be a writer

7. depth of your expertise

8. No, I've worked night shift before. A job that requires night shift is by definition, not a dream job.

9. Sure, got to be outside, meet dog owners, picking up poop is not hard work, and would retire in 12 years.

10. revered as a subordinate. Being a fearful boss sounds stressful. It's hard work to contstantly ensure that everyone fears you.

1. Memorable, but then I'm pretty sure I already am.

2. Not really.

3. "Smartest" in what way?

4. I'm not sure I care.

5. It depends on the reason behind the firing.

6. No idea. I haven't really anticipated the two careers I've had so far.

7. Breadth of versatility.

8. My dream job does not require those hours.

9. I honestly can't imagine signing that contract regardless of what the job entailed.

10. Revered as a subordinate. Fear is overrated.

1. I would rather be memorable. I'm one of those people that believes strongly that if you're driven strictly by money you will not be fulfilling your purpose in life fully.

2. Yes and no. I'm pursuing fire-fighting and you should leave with something that makes you question or confirms thoughts that you have at the end of the day when you get home from a shift.

3. Do you really have a choice on who you're smarter than?

4. I suppose the earlier the better. Set the bar high for yourself.

5. Absolutely not.

6. I'd open a bar and hang out with people all day.

7. Versatility is what I live for. You may be great at one thing but your options are restricted when that's the only thing you know.

8. Definitely. The only condition would be that I could not be married or have kids. Family is the most important.

9. Yes. You sell yourself short when you let your pride stand in the way of any success.

10. Although I consider leadership a solid quality of mine, I would never want to be feared by people I have to face everyday. I would rather be the lowly subordinate.