Everybody has dreams…but dreams change.
What you consider today as your dream job will most likely change in the next few years. It will happen for a number of reasons: experiences, life stages, interests, etc. I’ll discuss the real reason later.
Clients ask me, “What if the perfect job is out there, but I don’t know it exists?”
Good question. My response: you don’t know, that’s why you need to keep looking and applying.
Maybe not the answer you want to hear, but if your dream job doesn’t exist yet, create it.
Think about it. Interviewing for a job is essentially selling yourself. Creating a job is selling your idea (basically entrepreneurship).
Easier said than done, but the average tenure at your current job is less than 2 years. That’s not too far off from the average tenure of your dream career either.
We change jobs like we flip through the channels on TV. I tell my clients, “I can help you find the one career that best suits you, but expect this process to start over a few years from now.”
My job as a career coach isn’t really to help you figure out what to do next, it’s to help you figure out yourself (so you can do the process over in the future).
To loyalists this might sound depressing, but it’s just a sign of the times. Just like you and I will have to maintain a side hustle just to survive, your lifestyle will dictate your decisions, not your dreams.
For example, when you’re in your early 20’s you’re willing to be a slave to your career. Fast forward to your mid 30’s with a family and kids and you start saying “no” more than “yes” when it comes to work. During that time span what you considered as your dream job changes at least twice!
When it comes to your dream job the better question to ask is: why?
Why do I want this dream job? What does it represent? What can it provide?
I used to think I wanted to be an entrepreneur (and I still do), but what I really wanted: flexibility and control.
That can be found as a business owner, but it can also be found working for a company. My priorities shifted when I got married, then again when I had kids. That’s why your dream job will evolve too.
It is said that we are afraid of change, yet we do it all the time. We change our clothes, we change our interests and we change our jobs.
Your dream job will change over time…because you will change first.
Growing Forward 