Why I Love What I Do

Finding a dream job, we’re often told, is a lot like finding the right person to love: You have to kiss a lot of frogs before finding the one.

Frankly, though, I find that analogy discouraging. It implies that success in love -- whether for your career or a compatible mate -- is a numbers game: Keep at it long enough and you might eventually get lucky. In the meantime, though, you may find yourself slogging through a very big swamp.

I know that first-hand, when what I thought was a fairy-tale career story went belly-up. I sank the first twelve years of my professional life into my dream -- to become a professor of economics. Then I got dumped. I wasn’t granted tenure, and in the academic world, if you’re not granted tenure, you’re fired. The decision came down in April and by mid-May I was packing up my office. I felt bewildered, betrayed, and brutally cast out.

But as I describe in my book Forget A Mentor: Find A Sponsor, I pulled myself out of what I now realize would have been a rather limiting academic career and spread my wings into the wider world of public policy. As the founding president of the Center for Talent Innovation and chair of the Task Force for Talent Innovation, I lead a private-sector consortium of 85 global companies committed to changing the face of leadership around the world.

I couldn’t dream up a better job.

But having spent my career crunching data, I can’t just take my happiness at face value. I have to analyze exactly why I love what I do.

It turns out that the ingredients for my sense of fulfillment at work match up exactly with the value proposition defined in our research report Women Want Five Things. What inspires ambitious women to remain fully engaged and on track for leadership roles? What keeps me energized and excited about my work?

• Meaning and purpose. In our survey of U.S. professional women ages 35 - 50, 80% say it’s very important to be able to reach for meaning and purpose in their career. They find work meaningful when it helps advance causes important to them. For my part, I am able to spearhead research that organizations use to address today’s talent challenges, thereby ensuring that all talent has equal opportunities to grow and advance.
• Empower others, and be empowered. Two-third (67%) of our survey respondents say it’s very important to feel empowered and empower others. One of the reasons I love what I do is because I’m able to work with a team of smart and dedicated professionals who believe in our mission. I’m thrilled that I can open doors for them; in turn, they have helped me make CTI a center of ground-breaking research.
• Intellectual challenge. 85% of our respondents want the intellectual challenge that enables them to grow their mastery in their field -- and be recognized for it. For me, the pursuit of excellence is epitomized not just by the 30+ research studies we have published but by the fact that more than 85 global corporations and organizations support our belief that the full utilization of diverse talent is at the heart of competitive advantage and economic success.
• Flourish. Women flourish and flower when they feel they have agency and impact, when they have the ability to self-actualize. A whopping 89% of women surveyed say it’s very important to be able to flourish in their work or career. My position has allowed me to connect and collaborate with influential thought leaders who are making a difference in the diversity and inclusion space. Co-authoring a report with Kenji Yoshino, hosting a fireside chat with Cornel West, or pushing the boundaries with Katherine Phillips fuels my energy and inspires me to continue my efforts to make a difference.

(You’ve noticed, of course, that I’ve only listed four items. The fifth item -- earn well -- is cited by 57% of our respondents as very important, not only to attain financial security and independence for themselves but to sustain a comfortable lifestyle for themselves and their families. Money is an important motivator for me, too, but it’s not the main reason that I love what I do.)

If you are still slogging through a very big swamp, keep going. Make sure that every opportunity you choose from here on out will ultimately bring rewards and fulfillment into your life. And don’t be afraid to ask for help. Seek advisors, mentors, and sponsors who are willing to teach, protect and promote you as you navigate the corridors of power.

Choose a career that fulfills your value proposition. A career that inspires you to go to work every day. That’s my idea of a fairy-tale career.

 (Photo: JFXie, Flickr)