Work - Purpose, Income, Fulfilment
Hi darling,
Yes, I know. I have slipped up again from my bi-weekly schedule. But, this time I have valid reasons and I am sure even you would agree. My life has changed, for the better (or maybe the best) this time, and adjusting to these changes took some time. I love the person I am now. This change deserves a post of its own and I am sure you wouldn't be too angry after reading that.
But today, I wanted to talk about work and how we should view it in our lives. It is something I am thinking about quite deeply right now. I don’t know how the future of work would like in your times, but I hope you find this useful.
Here’s a structured way to think about it.
The world needs people to do certain tasks otherwise it just will not function. The importance of a doctor/teacher/banker in a remote village in a poor country is immense. The importance of nurses in ageing developed countries is another example.
The income of a particular work is not proportional to the value it generates. Certain occupations might be paid quite less, but their importance is immense.
Then there’s the personal question of what you like to do and what you don’t like to do. Plus, whether you can do a good job at it to get paid well.
So, let’s start thinking here in steps
Step 1 - What are the things that I would like to do ? What field interests me ?
Step 2 - How good am I at the fields/streams of work mentioned above ? Do you have it in you to be good at it ? You should be completely honest here.
Step 3 - Remember each field of work has a different income level based on how good you are at it. Example - An average software engineer (in June 2024) makes much more than an excellent mechanical engineer. Depending on how good you are at it, will decide your income levels. Income data from the internet should help.
Step 4 - Does it do good for the world ? Can you pick a field which generates a lot of value ? Now, all jobs may not be such valuable (my current job of showing ads). But, you may like doing it or the pay might be good. Then, it’s your call.
Leaving you with the concept of ikigai in Japanese. I hope you do something which is very valuable for the world and at the same time allows you to life comfortably as well.
Yours lovingly,
Dad
P.S - I am sure you will be good at what you choose, well I just know. If you ever need help, you know whom to talk to. :)