Career Burnout: Maya Luz

Career Burnout: Maya Luz

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A Generation in Crisis

What do I want to be when I grow up? That is a question that everyone has asked themselves at some point during their childhood. Ideally, the answer to that question should be what shapes the way you live your life for the next twenty years. But what happens when it doesn’t? What happens when you answer that question and instead of following your dream because society says it’s not practical, you give it up and conform to a career and life that “should” make you happy?

I know something is wrong since I am still asking myself “What do I want to be when I grow up?” Whatever I am supposed to be, I know it is not what I am doing now. In addition, I have started asking myself “Who do I want to be when I grow up?” Which I think is actually the more important question. And, when do you “grow up?” I’m in my mid twenties and I don’t feel like I have grown up yet. Am I waiting to “grow up” to create the life I want?! I’m currently trying to answer those questions. When I was little I wanted to be a Biology teacher, instead I now work on Wall Street. So, needless to say I got lost along the way and I am trying to find out how that happened and how I can get back on track. I am hoping that sharing my experiences and getting it out in the open will help others break the cycle of practical careers.

Why was the answer to “What do I want to be when I grow up?” so simple back then? When you’re young you have an idealistic view of the world. You live your everyday life surrounded by your parents, your teachers, the mailman, your pediatrician, all of which seem to have such clear defined roles, such clear identities that are never questioned. Your parents always wanted to be a secretary and a salesman, right? Children see the mailman and they think, there is the mailman. They don’t think, “Hey, there is someone who wanted to be a fighter pilot when he was a kid, but his girlfriend got pregnant when he was in college, so he dropped out and gave up his dreams for this job close to home with flexible hours and great benefits to support them.” That is probably the case. I would bet that he didn’t want to be a mailman when he grew up. Yet, on the other end of the spectrum, I once had a marketing professor that confided in the class his lifelong dream was actually to be a mailman. He came here from China and he was only working as a professor until he became independently wealthy enough to support his family so that he could be a mailman since being a mailman, let’s face it although one of the most important jobs in the country, does not pay well.

Maybe it’s because I’m fairly young and just waking up to all of this, but shouldn’t someone be able to follow their dreams regardless of anything else? A common problem I am finding with young adults born in the 80’s and beyond is that we have been told all of our lives that we can do anything that we set our minds to. Most of us have grown up with more than our parents ever could have dreamed of, more money and more opportunities. The truth is: I am finding that all of these opportunities and all of our “potential” have actually been too overwhelming to bear, crippling in a way, forcing us into about 5 generic career paths. 20 years ago, you graduated college and went to work. Your goal was to find a good job and stay there for as long as possible, work your way up and build a stable life. Once you were on your track, the process was hardly ever questioned. However, now this world is all about excess, about getting your MBA, about being an Entrepreneur, about taking big risks and yielding big rewards. It’s the time of the Wall Street bonuses, of the $150k plus starting law salary, the hedge fund. So, many of us give up our dreams in search of the almighty dollar, the dream of becoming independently wealthy by the time we turn thirty even though we hate our lives and we hate our jobs as we lie to ourselves and say that we will follow our dreams in 10 years when we don’t need to worry about the money. This realization has been eating away at me lately.

I do believe there can be a practicality and an evolution to the answer to this important question. But, fundamentally what you do with your life should light a fire in you and inspire you to be your best. I must say this; I know there is hope out there for all of us. I know this because I live with someone who is a career inspiration to me every day. My boyfriend knows what he wants to do with his life, he is passionate about it, he works hard, he’s great at it and he has it all. I am not jealous, because watching him has made me realize that I deserve the same fulfillment from my career and I won’t stop until I have it. I am just taking a slightly different path I guess.

I have plenty to say and I will throughout the course of this blog, but I am also fascinated to hear how other people are feeling about their lives and their career paths. Do you have an unfulfilled dream? Are you stuck in a Job or even Career that you hate? Do you find yourself going through the motions going to the same boring job everyday all while asking yourself, how did I get here? Let me know! It’s not too late to make a positive change in your life. I look forward to hearing your story! Email me anytime at theprettyprofessional@gmail.com.