Do what you love, love what you do

I believe one of the most important things in life is to find work that you love.

This may sound simple, but it isn't. Most people seem to get stuck in a rut of doing what they need to get by, instead of seizing the day and chasing their passion. It doesn't have to be that way.

In many ways I feel lucky to be pursuing my passion for a living, but I also remember the path that got me here.

Having gone through the Air Force Academy, I became a pilot at first. I didn't like that, so I got out of it. I started a masters degree in operations research, but it turned out that wasn't right for me, either. I started and finished an MBA program and liked that, but wasn't sure how to apply it. I got to manage people in the Air Force and did okay, but wasn't really thrilled about doing that for a living, either.

I took every career aptitude and interest survey I could find. I read and did all the exercises in What Color is Your Parachute. I talked to people in every career field I was interested in to find out what they did and didn't like about their field. I networked with people in hopes that at some point I could use such contacts to help me find a job.

I read about anything that interested me, from philosophy, to politics, to history, to psychology, to business, to investing. With investing, I really hit on something that jazzed me, and I read a ton more about it. I put myself to work learning everything I could about investing and applying it to my own money. Eventually, I realized I wanted to be an investor for a living, so I pursued the CFA designation to make myself more qualified.

I worked for 8 years figuring out what I wanted to do for a living. I started two masters degrees and finished one. I talked to dozens of people about different career fields. I compared my talents, interests and tendencies to each career option I faced. I went down many paths before I discovered one that was right for me.

I made gobs of mistakes in this process. I'd been in two career fields that weren't right for me. I pursued education several times I didn't use. I spent a ton of time and money, I missed out on entertainment and social activities, I was repeatedly frustrated. But, it was all worth it.

Spinoza once said, "All things excellent are as difficult as they are rare." As my wife would put it, boy howdy.

Finding the right career was a long, arduous path, but waking up excited to work every day makes it so worth the effort.

Nothing in this blog should be considered investment, financial, tax, or legal advice. The opinions, estimates and projections contained herein are subject to change without notice. Information throughout this blog has been obtained from sources believed to be accurate and reliable, but such accuracy cannot be guaranteed.