If You Can’t Commit Five Years To A Career, It’s Not Your Path


One of the most difficult questions to answer during a job interview is, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” It’s a loaded question in interviews, but blogger Steve Pavlina suggests that if you can’t answer that question for any career path you’re considering, then it’s probably not the right one to pursue.

Photo remixed from Michael Ruiz.

Pavlina’s idea here is that if you’re unsure where you want your career to go, you have to ask yourself if you can make a serious commitment to it for five years. Pavlina’s rule of thumb is very simple:

If you can’t make a serious 5-year commitment to a given career path, it’s not your path.

If you’re struggling to figure out what you want to do, or which of your skills you really want to concentrate on, Pavlina suggests you ask if you can see yourself doing it in five years. If the answer is yes, then that’s the career path you should pursue. It’s a handy barometer for both recent college graduates and anyone thinking about changing careers.

Is It Time for You to Stop Dabbling and Get Serious? [Steve Pavlina via 99U Twitter]


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