(Continued from previous post.)

Even as they declare that career as an institution is dead (as described in the last posting), Fernando Flores, John Gray, and Professor Denning also talk about the good news: a more effective concept of career is emerging that involves life “styles.” It’s important and empowering for all CareerBuilders to be aware of these styles.

Why? Because these styles can help you to clarify your goals and to see new possibilities that are open to you. Then you can put search tools like careerbuilders.com and monster.com to work for you in the best possible ways to achieve your goals.

For example, when you take that “perfect job quiz” or look at the “100 top jobs” or the “top jobs in the US” available on those websites, you’ll be able to interpret the results and resources in ways that are truly valuable for you.

So what are these life styles? . . .

There are two life styles that have been identified and differentiated by their focus: namely, self-directed or community-directed. Specifically, they can be described as follows:

• The self-directed style is one in which a person is driven by a quest to have their work result in personal and professional growth, autonomy, and passionate expression of their creativity. I call this the “Professional’s Path.”

• The community-directed style is one in which a person is driven by a quest to have their work contribute to the communities in which they live (which could include their local community, state, nation, or even the world). It’s up to the person as to “how big a game they want to play.” I call this the “Service Path.”

People following the Professional’s Path tend not to accept the idea of a lifelong commitment or loyalty to a single employer. Rather, they apply their talents through a series of projects that bring out their passion and enable them to enhance their skills. They nurture public identities that emphasize their passions, technical skills, and trustworthiness in such a way as to ensure income from new projects.

Whatever enables them to grow is where they direct themselves, whether that’s as a freelancer or at a company for a relatively long-term stint with a single employer. If that employer downsizes or reengineers them out of job, the disappointment is momentary. They use the situation as an opportunity to continue their quest.

On the other hand, people following the Service Path engage in creating value for the community and, in the process, create value, power, and identity for themselves. Therefore, it’s a balancing of altruism and self-interest. Civil servants, politicians, and cultural activists fit this style. But so do many successful business entrepreneurs who identify something missing and provide it.

An interesting example of the Service Path is Bill Gates. He’s an entrepreneur (extraordinaire!) who had a vision of providing something he saw missing in the computer revolution: affordable software that would harness the power of the PC and be available to anyone and everyone. Regardless of what you may think of Microsoft, Gates was successful beyond what he may have even imagined as possible. And now he’s moving into the next phase of his life as a full-time philanthropist.

By the way, the “self” in self-directed doesn’t indicate “self-ish.” Likewise, the “community” in community-directed doesn’t indicate a totally altruistic path. According to psychologist John Grey, there may be times in life when one or the other path is more appropriate.

For example, a self-directed Professional’s Path may be more appropriate for those in the early decades of their life—a time to grow personally, experientially, and skill-wise. Then, in later decades, to use this knowledge and growth to give back to the community through the Service Path. Likewise, as in the example of Bill Gates, there can be an effective blending of the two, although one or the other (self or community) will probably be the underlying primary drive.

The common denominator

Both the Professional’s Path and the Service Path have one very important aspect in common: you must create value for others in order to attain your goals.

By creating value for others you’ll not only attain your goals, you’ll also create a livelihood, that is, the financial means by which you live.

Next time we’ll take a closer look at the two paths and discuss how to tell if you are called to one or the other.
 

 © 2006 Gold Nugget Coaching

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