# Doing what you're good at vs doing what interests you



## ninjahitsawall (Feb 1, 2013)

Hello, oblivious inept millennial here.  I may have posted this video before, don't remember. But I saw it like 2 years ago and share it a lot. I think she has a point. 






After a bizarre and discouraging "exploratory" phone call with an HR recruiter from an organization earlier today (don't really want to go into it here, but long story short, apparently I came across like I wasn't "excited" because I was hesitating about possible scheduling conflicts with us meeting in the morning, and then was rudely hung up on.. at least that's my POV) I am thinking of changing my focus for the type of job/career field to go into. My ideal is probably to do something in biomedical research and then go back to school and study neuroscience (Master's or PhD), get involved in research. I graduated about a year ago and my work experience is mostly tech related (Help Desk, health IT software evaluation, teaching webinars I created content for; though I recently was also a temp research associate for an animal welfare organization) but my degree is BS in Psych/Bio minor. So I can go a few different directions here. 

Point is, I am thinking of ditching my "ideals" with medical research, this is where I haven't really gotten anywhere in at least the past year (not counting my attempts as an undergrad to get involved in research). This wasn't the only discouraging phone conversation I had with medical research HR, either. 

For some reason, I seem more desirable to tech/IT industries for entry-level or early career work, even though I am not formally educated in computer science or anything like that. I don't even feel confident that I'm qualified for this type of work. If not that, I've met with some agencies who seem to think I'm a good fit for more administrative-type data (entry, collection, etc) positions.. often within a tech company. It sounds kinda boring but, I'm starting to think about just taking what I can get rather than trying to plan out a career path for myself based on what I "want" (which for some reason I don't seem well-suited for, or maybe my personality just isn't right for the medical world). Maybe I am supposed to rebel and go totally corporate. :ninja: (Corporations aren't really seen as respectable where I live, lol). I don't know, I'm just pretty disillusioned with the whole "do what interests you" thing. I don't think it works that way anymore. (To be clear, I've always tried to reconcile my interests w/ my skills.. they just don't seem to align. It's more an either/or situation. And if I take this phone call to heart, then it seems nothing truly interests me.. ha.)


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## Popinjay (Sep 19, 2011)

Nothing interests me. I came to the conclusion a while ago that whatever makes the most money...


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

Popinjay said:


> Nothing interests me. I came to the conclusion a while ago that whatever makes the most money...


same, although more along the lines of "which career has the best income to stress ratio"? this is why I'm in accounting and not petroleum engineering lmao


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## Kito (Jan 6, 2012)

I stopped caring a while ago. I realised that putting so much effort into something I don't like would feel so dehumanising that I just wouldn't be willing to, no matter how good the rewards. Hence why I'm studying philosophy. Maybe I'm short-sighted or whatever, but I'm one of those people who just can't put aside their ideals for the sake of something greater. School made me do things I wasn't interested in for long enough... never again.


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## Schizoid (Jan 31, 2015)

Well, I happened to be a believer of "Always follow your passion."

When we like something, we will keep doing it until we eventually become good at it. Passion is what motivates a person to eventually be good at something. When we really like something, we will persevere even when the going gets tough. And this perseverance is what causes us to eventually be good at something.On the contrary, being good at something without passion is useless, because when a person is doing something they aren't passionate about, they won't feel motivated to keep up with their work, and they will be doing the bare minimum because they just couldn't be bothered with it, there is just no "soul" in their work, and everything feels dead. If you look at the greatest art in this world, the reason why those paintings are beautiful is because those artists put all their heart and soul into their work. Now just think about those artists who are good at drawing but their drawing lacked passion behind it. Which art would capture your attention more? The art that was being drawn with lots of passion behind it and you can actually feel that artwork coming alive, or the art that is being drawn without passion and the entire artwork just feel dead when you look at it?


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## Gossip Goat (Nov 19, 2013)

I don't think I'm "good" at anything because I'm not actively doing anything except college and I've always just mainly focused on academics. _I_ think I'm good at writing. I'm interested in writing about certain things like culture, society and social behavior (among other things). But I'm probably not going to pursue those things, at least not primarily. I'm not entirely sure what I'll end up pursuing. My thoughts right now are probably some kind of health care professional in the psychiatric field (but not a physician).


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## MisterPerfect (Nov 20, 2015)

Im good at creating systems, business plans, art, and managing people. I also extremely poor and going to be jobless by end of season. I built a school but I need help with the accounting part of it. So I need someone better at math and since I cant afford school I trying to purchase as many books as I can before seasons over.


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## Hurricane (Dec 6, 2015)

It's important to do what you like, enjoy and what you're good at if it's possible - after all, you spend a big chunk of your life working. But I think passions can be fickle, and it's unwise to go about your life on that along regarding a career or job. What I loved doing just three years ago and my needs have changed, so I've gone into a different but similar field at this point.

I like what I do and enjoy it. I've been told if you like what you do the majority of the time, then that's a good place to be.


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## ninjahitsawall (Feb 1, 2013)

Hurricane said:


> It's important to do what you like, enjoy and what you're good at if it's possible - after all, you spend a big chunk of your life working. But I think passions can be fickle, and it's unwise to go about your life on that along regarding a career or job. What I loved doing just three years ago and my needs have changed, so I've gone into a different but similar field at this point.
> 
> I like what I do and enjoy it. I've been told if you like what you do the majority of the time, then that's a good place to be.


Do you mind sharing what it is you do?


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## Hurricane (Dec 6, 2015)

Sure! I'm an editor in the publishing industry.


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## Hurricane (Dec 6, 2015)

I understand you are feeling discouraged, but I think it would be unfortunate to give up what you want to do because of those recruiters. You said you want to "probably to do something in biomedical research." Is there something specific or are you just casting a wide net? Have you not been out of school for long? If you don't have the right background that recruiters are looking for, is there another type of job a rung lower you can take to get your foot in the door? (Maybe it doesn't work like that in that industry, I don't know.) Only give it up if you really want to. And if you do take another path like you're talking about, you can always change your mind again - that's ok, that's life sometimes.


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## HAL (May 10, 2014)

Can't be bothered watching the video and for that I apologise.

I just want to say that I've agreed for a long time that following your interests is not always the best thing. It's what leads to morons in overly high ranking positions, because it's "_What I've always wanted to do!_"

People are often interested in things that they aren't naturally good at. It's why they're drawn to them in the first place. A fascination with some particular skill that is difficult for them to master.

Personally, I would have studied film and video production if I'd gone to uni straight from school. Luckily I was nowhere near ready/mature enough so I didn't bother. Definitely escaped there because I would now be an unemployable arts graduate otherwise. Not that I have a thing against arts people, it's just that I, personally, do not have the real skills to make it in that world. I might 'like' doing it, but only at an amateur level. 

I was always good at maths in school so a few years later I decided to 'just do what I'm good at'. I'm now on a physics degree and it's brilliant. I mean, I don't wake up everyday and think, "Yeaaaah, my passion, physics!", but I have a strong sense of ability and am optimistic about things in general because I can grasp it all rather easily. It's what I'm good at, and I like that.

I've found something I'm good at, and my amateur pastimes are all still there to work on if I feel like it. Jackpot!


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## Ybmoz (Nov 29, 2015)

I'm an art student in college and for us it is impossible finishing this degree if it isn't your passion and you're not good at it. 99% will never make it as an artist of course and most of the masters end up working in Ikea or the local supermarket. I do think it's harder in Europe because of it's "high standards" Europe has to maintain yet it fails to support young artists.

It doesn't help that in my country you have to have a specific degree to do a specific job and they keep on broadening the options. You have to know exactly what you want to do at the age of 18 or hello social welfare (unless you are elite ofcourse).

Should've known earlier (':


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## General Lee Awesome (Sep 28, 2014)

I always thought to be interested in something, you gotta be good at it. I d imagine it would be hard to be interested in something you are not good at o.o unless u are just really good at failing, that you have interest in things that you are not good at. o.o


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## Watchtower (Aug 20, 2015)

Popinjay said:


> Nothing interests me. I came to the conclusion a while ago that whatever makes the most money...


I only wish I was like that. Nothing interests me either. Not even money. To me, slaving away at something that makes my brain ooze slowly out of my eyeballs is the same as being dead.


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## Ybmoz (Nov 29, 2015)

johnson.han.3 said:


> I always thought to be interested in something, you gotta be good at it. I d imagine it would be hard to be interested in something you are not good at o.o unless u are just really good at failing, that you have interest in things that you are not good at. o.o


That's interesting, I'm in the opinion it's the other way around; i think you need interest first in order to get good in that thing you're interested in. After all skills are something you acquire not something you're born with.


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## Hurricane (Dec 6, 2015)

How about this: I once worked with a guy who was awful at what he did, but he thought he was great. He eventually got fired due to his incompetence. That was a case of someone being really into a field/skill they stunk at (then again, in his head he was hot stuff, though he very much wasn't, so that affects it).

I think it can go either way with interest and ability/skill. I have things I am skilled at but have no interest in pursuing. And also also things I am interested in but I know I would need to develop those skills to become any good (but once I have started, I do need to see progress that I can be any good at it in order to continue staying interested.)


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## Father of Dragons (May 7, 2012)

Well, firstly I will respond to the thread title, which is a bit more general than what you are asking in your OP. I think that any one person could find many​ different things which could be completely captivating to them if they really opened their mind to it. Considering then the practical matters of lifestyle, standard of living, etc., the ideal scenario is to find a niche or field somewhere where your lifestyle goals intersect with an interest in the work. Now this might not be possible for everyone due to various constraints, but I think it is something worth striving towards, whether that means constantly sampling different fields and careers, or just hustling to succeed in the one.

Now, to respond to your specific situation, @_ninjahitsawall_. Firstly, I think you are giving too much credence to the opinions of those headhunters and HR people. None of them are looking out for your best interests - they are simply trying to find the fresh meat that their clients/bosses want. Not to mention, they aren't interested in evaluating who you could be in 5 years - they only care about filling roles now. You on the other hand have the privilege of being able to consider how you might grow and where you might end up with a bit of hard work. 

If you aren't qualified for research now, then you can make moves that will improve your value and get your foot in the door. As you are only a year out of your undergrad, you certainly have many options to take to improve your probability of ending up in medical research. For starters, masters degrees abound. You should seriously scour the internet to find what kind of masters are out there which could be of service to you. If money is an issue, you could check out universities abroad to see if they may have lower tuitions. (In Germany tuition is free for foreign students.) If grades are an issue, you could lower your standards and go to a lower-ranking school and work your ass off. I've been reading about grad school all year and there are many people who start "low" and constantly "trade up." If you did well in your masters you could apply to a better school for a PhD, for example. If you rocked your doctoral thesis you could get a post-doc at an even better school, etc. etc.

On the other hand, if you are doubting your commitment to research as much as that recruiter was, then you should learn more about how you could increase your value in other areas such as IT. Perhaps, identify roles that seem exciting to you. It won't hurt you to explore your options - you can't cheat on a profession, after all. Keep an open mind about it! There may be something else out there that will be fascinating to you if you let it.


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## Worriedfunction (Jun 2, 2011)

This is very duh for me.

It's clear that a passion can be formed for any number of reasons but if we are a container for our passions then in turn the apparent reality(ies?) we live in and presume exist are the container for our limitations and the limitation of those passions. I really dislike the "special fucker" infection in modern society.

In my eyes it's the cause of many of the social issues in first world countries; we're giving people unrealistic and unfair expectations of self involved and grandiose individualistic successes.

When the reality is that you're nearly always better off thinking carefully on what goals are, what the money will be (since it's a system we're going to be stuck with for a while) and what you can tolerate. 

Anything else is pot luck and how you choose to deal with it. You can't do anything you put your mind to but you can find your limits pursuing that notion. So use it that way and don't expect more than your limits will allow.

If anything a passion is something to pursue in your spare time. Attempting to align it with work is highly unlikely to be what you think it is and may even ruin that passion.

@_ninjahitsawall_

I think you're taking the wiser choice by thinking this through. I'm sure you'll come up with a direction and once you see it you'll be surprised you didn't notice it before.


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## ninjahitsawall (Feb 1, 2013)

Hurricane said:


> I understand you are feeling discouraged, but I think it would be unfortunate to give up what you want to do because of those recruiters. You said you want to "probably to do something in biomedical research." Is there something specific or are you just casting a wide net? Have you not been out of school for long? If you don't have the right background that recruiters are looking for, is there another type of job a rung lower you can take to get your foot in the door? (Maybe it doesn't work like that in that industry, I don't know.) Only give it up if you really want to. And if you do take another path like you're talking about, you can always change your mind again - that's ok, that's life sometimes.





Father of Dragons said:


> Well, firstly I will respond to the thread title, which is a bit more general than what you are asking in your OP. I think that any one person could find many​ different things which could be completely captivating to them if they really opened their mind to it. Considering then the practical matters of lifestyle, standard of living, etc., the ideal scenario is to find a niche or field somewhere where your lifestyle goals intersect with an interest in the work. Now this might not be possible for everyone due to various constraints, but I think it is something worth striving towards, whether that means constantly sampling different fields and careers, or just hustling to succeed in the one.
> 
> Now, to respond to your specific situation, @_ninjahitsawall_. Firstly, I think you are giving too much credence to the opinions of those headhunters and HR people. None of them are looking out for your best interests - they are simply trying to find the fresh meat that their clients/bosses want. Not to mention, they aren't interested in evaluating who you could be in 5 years - they only care about filling roles now. You on the other hand have the privilege of being able to consider how you might grow and where you might end up with a bit of hard work.
> 
> ...


I am just getting tired of hitting dead ends after phone screenings with recruiters. It's making me actually lose interest in that area, which makes me think maybe I'm not interested enough to begin with. Otherwise, my interest would outweigh the drained feeling I get from repeatedly filling applications and doing phone screenings. I know that feeling of something just feeling worth it and you're not even thinking about the mundane things holding you back.. I don't feel that way about any of the job searching, really. At this point, it feels like going through motions, and not worth doing. 

Really, I am interested in neuroscience (have been since high school), and it seems the most direct path, as far as work experience goes, is bio/medical research (that plus lots more education). But like I said, I start to get tired of the whole thing just from looking for work in that area so... seems I don't like it enough? I can keep it as a hobby instead. 

From more of a pure logic perspective, I always believed it was better to "go where there's need" or go where the opportunities/greater chances are. Path of least resistance, so to speak. Which is not with this medical stuff, apparently. At least not now. (And maybe since I have T over F preference it would be more effective to follow the logic perspective rather than trying to follow some "passion"? :tongue: Emotions have always been more a consequence than a cause for me anyway)


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## katemess (Oct 21, 2015)

I chose not to make my passion a career, because I didn't want to risk resenting it or seeing what I used to love as a chore. I'd prefer to do something that I just like okay and keep my passions as interests and hobbies which will then serve as a great distraction when I need one. 

I started out in Law, changed my degree to Global Business, and am now trying to transfer to a double degree in Business Administration and Law. I don't love either degree but they're relatively useful and I'll probably be able to get a semi-decent job.


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## ninjahitsawall (Feb 1, 2013)

Swordsman of Mana said:


> this is hopelessly optimistic even with a dream career. even if you are, say, a professional singer, no one wants to deal with narcissistic conductors, last-minute call-ins, over-booked performances (ex: singing 8 operas in a week in the lead role), colleagues who don't know their parts well or critics who condemn even the most brilliant performances.


I think some people are good at being like "fuck it" to all that stuff and move along. But that's really hard to do, probably impossible, if you aren't already obsessed with the point of what you're doing (singing, in this case).


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## Miss Bingley (Jun 28, 2013)

Swordsman of Mana said:


> this is hopelessly optimistic even with a dream career. even if you are, say, a professional singer, no one wants to deal with narcissistic conductors, last-minute call-ins, over-booked performances (ex: singing 8 operas in a week in the lead role), colleagues who don't know their parts well or critics who condemn even the most brilliant performances.


Of course not! Even a dream career is not always easy. But I feel like if you truly enjoyed what you are doing, you would be able to overlook such things.


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

melisanddre said:


> Of course not! Even a dream career is not always easy. But I feel like if you truly enjoyed what you are doing, you would be able to overlook such things.


I think Enneagram might have something to do with this. as a 3, you're naturally going to be more practical, likely to perform at the top of your industry and tend to have an easier time overlooking the stress that comes with hard work. 3s are willing to make career sacrifices which other types are not, especially if it's something that they love, whereas, for other people, their preferred lifestyle frequently clashes with passions.

additionally, one also has to take into consider where one is starting from. if you're broke as hell and have little job experience, following your passion immediately can be fucking absurd. personally, I advocate choosing a practical yet relatively enjoyable career path and slowly working in your passion until you can do more of it (unless your passion is something which can make bank immediately, like computer programing or engineering)


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## Morpheus83 (Oct 17, 2008)

Depends on your circumstances--it doesn't always have to be either/or. If you need money to be able to finance your passions, and your skill in whatever you're passionate about needs to be developed (which also won't earn you enough to cover your needs and wants), then it's okay to do something for financial security while slowly working on your passion/s as a side project.


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## Roland Khan (May 10, 2009)

It's a good thing that I both enjoy and am good at masturbation....now to check who's hiring:happy:


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## flamesabers (Nov 20, 2012)

While it would be nice to find a job you love doing, I think a more practical approach is to take jobs you can tolerate without too much stress. Who knows, you may find you enjoy doing a job more than you thought you would. If nothing else, working outside of medical research could be a stepping stone to finding a job more suited for your interests. 



Roland Khan said:


> It's a good thing that I both enjoy and am good at masturbation....now to check who's hiring:happy:


The porn industry?


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## Hypaspist (Feb 11, 2012)

What I'm good at, I now have no interest in. The thing that I'm interested in, has always been a thorn in my side and the thing that must be defeated. I'll have a passion once I finally defeat the thing holding me back (math).


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## Arzazar Szubrasznikarazar (Apr 9, 2015)

I usually don't become good at stuff that doesn't interest me.


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## ninjahitsawall (Feb 1, 2013)

Arzazar Szubrasznikarazar said:


> I usually don't become good at stuff that doesn't interest me.


Well I am very good at memorizing facts and describing concepts in the field I always wanted to go into (neuroscience), interpreting the research, etc. And I've been told by my supervisor at my internship that I can end up pretty much anywhere with my critical thinking skills. So yeah that's something I like and I'm "good at", I guess. But as far as something more concrete? That goes in a whole other direction. For example I could probably get an ISTJ-stereotype type of job (file organizing, spreadsheets, etc). Because that is where a lot of entry-level work is, and I am very good at organizing shit (especially if someone's paying me to do it and I have the pressure of it being someone else's shit, haha). But as an INTJ the thought of that freaks me out. :disturbed: I think after awhile it'd also possibly make me insane.


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## Arzazar Szubrasznikarazar (Apr 9, 2015)

ninjahitsawall said:


> Well I am very good at memorizing facts and describing concepts in the field I always wanted to go into (neuroscience), interpreting the research, etc. And I've been told by my supervisor at my internship that I can end up pretty much anywhere with my critical thinking skills. So yeah that's something I like and I'm "good at", I guess. But as far as something more concrete? That goes in a whole other direction. For example I could probably get an ISTJ-stereotype type of job (file organizing, spreadsheets, etc). Because that is where a lot of entry-level work is, and I am very good at organizing shit (especially if someone's paying me to do it and I have the pressure of it being someone else's shit, haha). But as an INTJ the thought of that freaks me out. :disturbed: I think after awhile it'd also possibly make me insane.


I guess it's a Te momentum thing. I have modulation Te and Si so I have to fetish on something to become good at it.


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## Alpha_Orionis (Jan 18, 2015)

I think that it is important to follow your passion, what you are interested in. However, in some circumstances that is simply not possible. Maybe it would be prudent to go with what you are good right now, but put that which interests you on a backburner, see if you can continue with it later.


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