I walked into my adviser’s office, overflowing with frustration and confusion about the advice I had received at a recent career development workshop. I should follow my dream, and if I didn’t yet know what that was, I should live with career uncertainty until I figured it out. But as an international student working in the United States, taking time to explore wasn’t an option for me. He told me that instead of focusing on finding a dream job, I should think about what I am good at and what makes me happy at least 80% of the time. This advice surprised me at first, but it ended up being exactly what I needed to hear.
I began to attend career panels, which all followed a worryingly similar template. I would walk into the room with other excited graduate students and collect my free cookies and coffee, confident that the panelists would have the magical answers I needed. Instead, they would talk—again—about following their dreams. I felt totally lost.
Finally, I went to my adviser for help. We hadn’t talked much about my career plans over the years, but I felt I needed a new perspective from someone who knew me well. When he offered his advice, I was taken aback at first. What happened to “if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life”? My adviser assured me there is seldom such a job.
I started a blog about the history of scientific discoveries. I found that I loved the freedom to choose what to write about, and I never encountered a challenge I didn’t enjoy. After 3 years of writing, I was offered a position as a science writer. It’s nothing like my childhood dream. But I am happy—more than 80% of the time.
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