Almost everyone in
their lives comes to point of differentiating a job from a career. This point
is believed to be the key point in a person’s life, where they take an active
decision of what they want to for the rest of their life. Many people often
confuse a job with a career, believing them to be the same thing as both of
them are done in the exchange of money. However, these are two different terms
and should not be confused.
DEFINITION
A job is something you
have to do to achieve your employer’s goal in exchange for monetary gain. While
a career is something you have to do for monetary gain, financial freedom and personal
fulfillment. For a job you will have to be employed but with a career you can be
employed and still have a career or transcend into becoming an entrepreneur. For
example, you can have a job as a sales person in a grocery store just to pay
the bills, or you can take a sales person job as the first step in a lifelong
career as a grocery store owner.
REASON
FOR WORKING
The difference between
a job and a career has more to do with how you look at your workday. If you
think of the hours you spend at work as something you only do because you have
to not because you want to, then you have a job. If you think of your workday
as part of a lifelong journey you chose for yourself based on your own
interests and passions, then you have a career.
“If
you hate Mondays, you have not yet found your career path”
SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM GAINS
Sometimes,
a job can even pay more than a career in the short term, but career
professionals usually earn much more in the long term. Careers often require
you to invest both money and time to get the education or job skills you need
to succeed. It requires that you have a goal and a focus.
For every employee as a short
income-lifespan which will end in three ways: Resignation, Retrenchment or
Retirement. But a career
professional has a longer income-lifespan, which can fuel generations to come.
“If Dangote had resolved to be an
employee would he be the richest man in West Africa?”
PERSONAL FULFILLMENT
You
will spend much of your time at work, so the work you do can have a big impact
on your quality of life and sense of fulfillment. If you just pick the job that
pays the best or has the most convenient schedule for your short-term needs,
your work probably won't contribute much to your happiness in life. If you work
on building a career based on your own passions and talents, your work can help
make your life richer and more rewarding in many ways.
A bank worker whose job
is to count money, stamp teller and record deposit all day long, all year long
can never have fulfillment in that job. A fulfilling job should present one or
both of these opportunity;
·
Opportunity to increase in knowledge in that field
·
Opportunity to increase in income over a reasonable
period of time
“If you
work in an atmosphere where you do the same thing all day and all year long and
your income grows in slow motion or not at all, them that's just SAD”.
Job-seekers are looking
for many different things and approach jobs with varying levels of commitment
and enthusiasm. Some might search for a position that allows a steady salary or
easy work, or based on the popularity of
the company while others might search for a meaningful future in an industry
they're passionate about. This difference defines the distinction between jobs
and careers. While your job consists of the tasks you perform daily to earn
income, your career encompasses your entire experience, education and future
path within a particular industry.
There is this famous
quote by Confucius which states, “Choose a job you love, and you will never
have to work a day in your life.”
