Should you pursue a passion career or a safe career?
Should you stay in a safe career or should you make a bold move and start transitioning to your passion career?
This question has been the topic of many books,
Articles,
And programs in the world of personal development for several decades.
In fact,
Many of the people who came to me for coaching in recent years were navigating this dilemma.
Yet the world is changing very rapidly,
And this question,
I believe,
Will soon become anachronistic.
Now more than ever,
The concept of a safe career may no longer be relevant.
We don't even know what the meaning of career will be in an age dominated by AI.
But we surely know that with the current pace of development,
Expecting any career to be safe?
Is wishful thinking.
Many people believe that in the next couple of years,
AI agents will take over the majority of knowledge work jobs we currently have.
In fact,
Most of the internet seems to be panicking.
While I don't believe in fear-mongering and speculation.
I do think it's important to be aware of the world around us and see how it impacts our life and career choices.
Especially when we can turn the prospect of fear.
Into opportunity and motivation.
The old dichotomy.
In a not too distant past,
We would consider safe career things like medicine,
Law,
Engineering,
Finance,
Or anything that could lend you a job in a big corporation with a clear career trajectory and ideally,
Healthcare benefits.
It was pragmatic and responsible to prioritize such a path in life.
For it would guarantee steady income,
And we did the ability to buy a house,
Build a family,
And if all went well,
Have a nice retirement when we could then dedicate ourselves to our passions without distractions.
That would be the life path that you would choose if your strongest core values were about security,
Stability,
Status,
And family.
Or if you are genuinely passionate about those fields.
Which is the case only for a minority of people.
Then there was the path of the passion career.
Becoming a musician,
An artist,
A life coach,
Filmmaker,
Comedian,
Spiritual teacher,
Home organizer,
Author,
Yoga master,
Podcaster,
Energy healer,
Illustrator,
Et cetera.
In these lines of work,
It is more about doing what you love.
Expressing what's in your soul.
Mastering something that you're passionate about.
In the words of Seth Godin.
Doing work that matters for people who care.
The second path would be the choice for those whose strongest values were about purpose,
Creativity,
Originality,
Self-expression.
This dichotomy was real when the safe careers could offer you the tantalizing promise of a steady job and financial security.
In a world where every type of knowledge work is on the line,
At risk of being replaced by a super intelligent machine,
That is no longer the case.
In the coming years,
Cognitive value creation and efficiency may no longer be that valuable or sellable.
The new calling.
What then is left for us?
To be more human.
To stop trying to be a machine and finally accept defeat in that pointless exercise.
To work with our body,
Heart and soul.
Rather than just our analytical minds.
In the world that is emerging around us.
The so-called passion career may be the only career that still matters.
Not because it will be the thing that will still make us money.
It will likely do that at least for some time.
Rather,
It will be the only career that still matters because,
If we do get to a world where human work is no longer needed,
It will be the only thing that will give us purpose and keep us alive.
The world is telling us that it doesn't need us to sit in front of a computer all day long anymore.
What we were doing behind the computer.
The computer will be able to do by itself,
Without breaks and soon enough without flaws.
What the world does need.
Is for us to do work that matters for people who care.
That we embrace our passion and our unique vocation.
And work with our heart and soul.
In the past,
This was a big ask.
One that could only be heeded by individuals who are already deeply connected to their calling.
And had the courage to embrace it.
In a couple of years,
However,
This may not be a big ask anymore.
It may be the only lifeline available for those who still want to live a life of purpose and contribution.
By removing many of our options,
The universe is asking us to find our true calling.
And to do that on purpose,
Without fear.
This doesn't mean that you need to make a rash decision moved by a fantasy of how things will turn out.
But it does mean that now more than ever.
Is a really good time to take a deep look inside your soul.
Find out what you're calling us.
And make a solid plan to transition to a life that fully embraces it.
Embracing your passion career surely brings several challenges,
Requiring self-discipline,
Commitment,
And perseverance.
But the life where you don't embrace your passion career.
And have no concrete plan to transition to it.
Also has its problems and challenges.
The difference is.
.
.
Those challenges are not building up toward your aspirations.
Now here's the summary of this article in a three-line poem.
Safe paths crumble fast.
Heart rekindles dreams past.
Embrace your calling at last.
