Career Coach: Open the Vault

I don't know you or how well your career is going. I do know that there are three keys to job satisfaction that are worth contemplating. Which ones have you unlocked? Which ones have eluded you? Evaluate how well you're using the three keys...or not.

Passion. The late Steve Jobs (of Apple fame) is a legend, and his passion played a huge role in his success. Before everyone knew his name, however, Jobs was a college dropout who enrolled in a calligraphy class for fun. Ten years later, that same class had a profound influence on font design for the Mac computer. Who would have guessed?

What about you? Not inspired by your current job, but not ready to make a big change? Take a cue from Steve Jobs, and follow your heart without putting your job in jeopardy. Register for a class, volunteer in your community, or take on a research project. Learn something new, or revisit a hobby that you've let fall by the wayside. You never know where it will lead you, but finding out sure could be fun!

Aptitude. If you have an “aptitude” for something, you are naturally good at it. That doesn’t mean you can skimp on learning or practice. It just means that you have an innate capacity to perform. Aptitude applies to company culture as well—some people prefer to work at a deliberate and steady pace, while others thrive on the stimulation of a fast-moving environment.

All jobs come with specific demands. Not everyone can be a surgeon, a hotel manager, or a truck driver—all worthy professions with wildly different aptitude requirements. If you don’t love your job, maybe it’s the wrong fit for the way you're naturally wired.

Demand. The needs of the marketplace fluctuate and, therefore, so do opportunities. Jobs become obsolete or get outsourced, and some pay better than others. When you find a job that engages both your passion and your aptitude, you must then ask yourself, Will this pay me what I need to be happy?

If the answer is no, all is not lost! Adjust your priorities and expectations—can you be happy doing something you love and making less money than you’d like? The answer is up to you, but the demand for your skills and passions is not. Maybe earning less to do what fulfills you isn’t such a bad tradeoff.

Passion, aptitude, demand: your career needs all three in order to thrive. Figure out where they intersect, and find a way to get there. Steve Jobs isn’t the only one to have used these three keys to open the vault—every month, we feature many others who have done the same. Now it’s your turn.

—Alan Allard, Career Coach