If someone asked you to describe your perfect job in 30 seconds or less, could you do it?
Most people can't, but they'll tell you that their jobs aren't it, according to Brian Cork, founder and managing partner of brian cork Human Capital, a recruiting, coaching and human resources consulting firm in Alpharetta.
 SCOTT THIGPEN/Special |
 LEITA COWART/Special |
| Lisa Dugan, an executive coach, says self-discovery is time-consuming but pays off when you find the career that is right for you. |
More people go to college than ever before in the United States, "yet 73 percent of people coming out of college don't get a first job that is related to their degree," Cork said. "Many come out of college with no idea of the direction they want to take, so they take a job, get married, buy a house, have a family and, around ages 35 to 40, they begin to ask, 'What am I doing?' They don't like their job and feel unfulfilled."
Others may have planned for their careers, "but they chose a path based on parental or family expectations. Someone told them it was a good profession, or it offered the security of paying well," said Lisa Dugan, executive coach and the Atlanta chairwoman for Vistage International, a CEO membership organization dedicated to increasing the effectiveness and enhancing the lives of chief executives.
By midlife, they may be helping elderly parents, paying for their children's college educations and living a very comfortable lifestyle, but they aren't happy at work.
"They feel stuck, but unless the pain is really bad, they won't make a change. They fear the risks," she said. "If you're in a job and you're not happy, you have to carve out some time to change."
It takes time, common sense and focus.
"The 'secret' formula is finding the answers to three questions: What are you good at? What do you want to do? Who needs you?" Cork said.
What are you good at?
When Cork was 10, his grandfather once introduced him to a friend, saying: "This is my grandson, Brian. You could put him in a corn field buck naked, and within two weeks he'd own the farm."
"I didn't understand that at 10, but I did at 30," Cork said.
Having built and sold several businesses, raised more than $500 million in private placement capital for several companies, and recruited and counseled hundreds of executives, Cork knows he's an entrepreneur with excellent problem-solving, sales and customer-service skills.
Cork suggests a simple exercise to help you find your first job or change careers. Take pads and pencils, and sit down with your spouse or a close friend one night. In 10 minutes, both of you write down 15 things in which you excel. When you're finished, compare lists.
"If there are five similar traits or qualities at roughly the same point in both lists, it's a good bet that those are things you are actually good at," Cork said.
"Another way to gain self-awareness about your strengths is to work with a coach who does personality and skills assessments," Dugan said. "A third person can be more objective about your skills and traits, but use the assessment as a guide only."
Self-discovery takes time, Dugan said, so she tells clients to give themselves "permission to be curious, to explore and to play with the idea of what they'd like to do. Plan to spend a certain percentage of each week on figuring out what's next."
What do you want to do?
"Figuring out what you want to do is the hardest part. Most people don't follow their dreams, because of the fear factor. They do what they think they have to do, which is why they look back later in life and feel unfulfilled," Cork said.
He decided to follow his grandfather's advice "to follow your dreams and be true to your friends."
While expanding a business into Colorado, he moved to a small town after finding out he could train to be a volunteer firefighter there.
"It had been a lifelong dream, and I learned so much good business philosophy working with those guys," he said.
Make a list of your dream jobs, he tells clients, but keep in mind the things you do well.
"If you don't like risk, you shouldn't plan to start a company. If you're not an expert, don't plan to be a consultant, and, if you want to write a book, make sure you've got the experience in a subject that would interest readers," Cork said.
When a job description attracts you, "ask yourself who you know that works in that field," Dugan said. Call and ask him or her for an informational interview.
"Interviewing others is a huge help in finding the right job for your skills and interests," Dugan said. "Young people are reluctant to ask, but people are typically flattered to talk about their field. Take notes. You'll begin to see patterns emerge — things that awaken your passion and things you know you don't want to do."
If parents encouraged their high school children to interview other adults they know to learn more about various professions and trades, students would be better-prepared to choose jobs that fit their passions, Cork said.
"It would reduce the indecision about which college [to attend] and what to do once they got there," he said. "They would be more focused [and more] confident when they graduate."
Internships and cooperative work experiences are other ways to try different jobs to see how they fit.
Who needs you?
Once you understand your perfect job, "do your homework about which companies need your skills. Put them on your target list," Dugan said.
Start researching them.
"Information really is power; with more knowledge you can make better decisions," Cork said.
Create a résumé that can be quickly customized to match companies on your target list, and watch for job openings that fit your strengths. If you know employees who could be an advocate for you with hiring managers, ask for their help.
"Read and talk with other employees about their company culture. A company may have the job you want, but, if the culture is wrong, it's like planting a bush in the wrong soil. It won't grow," Dugan said.
Most people want to feel like they are contributing to something greater than themselves and to thrive in an environment that allows them to do what they do best, she said.
"The perfect job is different for everyone, but when you're excited and happy about an opportunity — when you start to see that you could do it, that you could contribute and it would allow you live the kind of life you want — then you know that you're on the right track," Dugan said.
Your perfect job may not be the traditional 9-to-5 position.
"It might be one that allows you to spend more time with your family or fits your values or lets you contribute to a philanthropic cause," she said.
One of her clients worked in banking but was an artist whose paintings sold well. She quit her job to become a full-time artist, only to learn that she didn't like painting commissions. Her art began to feel like work.
She went back to banking and is happy creating her art as an avocation.
"If you follow your passion and do what you love, work is like play," Dugan said.
"Show me a guy who loves his job, and he's sharing it every night with his sons and daughters," Cork said. "He's telling great stories, mentoring people and inspiring his children to go out and find work that will fulfill them."
The benefits of being in the perfect job are that "you feel affirmed and centered. There's a feeling of belonging and conviction. When you do great work and you know it, people are naturally attracted to you, and you instinctively enable those around you," Cork said.
Helping people make better decisions to build business cultures that endure energizes him.
"It's the perfect job," he said.