Dispelling the misunderstanding of “dreams”

There is often a theme for newcomers in the workplace when choosing a job: stick to your dreams. But most of the time, this sentence is misleading. Because it implicitly assumes that you clearly understand your dreams. But this assumption is questionable.

First of all, you probably don’t know what you want. Finding something you truly love is often not easy. For newcomers in the workplace, what is really important is not "stick to your dreams" but "stick to your exploration." When most inspirational people discuss "hold on to your dreams", Steve Jobs encouraged us to "keep looking. Don't settle." in his speech at Stanford.

Secondly, your dreams may belong to "two "Momo" type. "Two steamed buns" comes from a joke. It was said that an old man in the village was discussing what he would do if he became emperor. He said: "Then I will eat two steamed buns every meal, one with white noodles and one with yellow noodles." Your thoughts will also be limited to your own vision.

A student told me that he wanted to be an administrative assistant because he watched "Du Lala's Promotion". I think this is a typical sign of not having a broad vision. Choosing an administrative assistant as a career starter is usually not a high-quality choice. Of course, this is not to ridicule his idea. He can still do this, and it is also good to investigate and do internships. Because only after real action practice will there be gains. As your first job, it's usually much better if you make decisions after broadening your horizons. After all, this is not Taobao, and you can return or exchange goods within 7 days.

Finally, your dream is likely to be like Mr. Ye’s love for dragons. More than one student told me that he wanted to do marketing because he felt "he is very creative and can use his creativity in marketing." Only after I started working did I realize that marketing is often not about creativity, but hard work and execution. Before you decide on your first job, do at least two things: first, communicate with more than three people in the industry, and second, choose a relevant internship. This can help you eliminate most of the "Ye Gong Loves Dragon" dreams. Among them, I communicated with people in the industry and included these three questions in the conversation:

1. If you went back to college now and chose your first job again, what would you do and why? Through this question, you can quickly understand where he thinks he went wrong and how to improve.

2. How is this job different from what you imagined? Understand where others are wrong, which is often where you are wrong too.

3. What is the most profound thing in your career? Through this question, you can feel the excitement and challenges of different careers in advance.

Narrow down the industry and career direction

For newcomers in the workplace who lack direction, I suggest narrowing down the scope according to the following criteria:

1. Follow your interests.

It is easier to follow your interests. If you already have your own ideas, such as wanting to be a chef, then go for it. Of course, this is only suitable for students who understand their interests.

2. Follow social development trends

If you have no clear interest, then follow social development trends. Lei Jun said: "Standing on the wind, even a sow can fly." Follow the trend of social development, and you will get many opportunities. So how do you look at market trends specifically? It is recommended to start with the following points.

One is to follow the major changes around you. From the changes around us, we can feel the trends of society. For example, in recent years, there have been significantly more people using mobile phones and fewer people watching TV. Industries related to mobile phones may be a good direction.

The second is to follow the flow of funds. Investors like places where it's easier to make money. Some of these choices are due to the "direction of the development of advanced productive forces." So observing where money flows can help you think about social development trends. For example, take a look at the news on Investing in China, which may stimulate your thinking.

The third is to follow the recruitment needs. Go to the recruitment website to check the recruitment volume for various positions. A large recruitment volume is a good sign: social demand is huge.

3. Follow the top players

Another way to lock in your job search direction is to "follow people." If you don’t have a clear direction for your job search, following the top players is also an option. On the one hand, you can rely on other people's opinions (which may be wrong, but the probability is more reliable than guessing). On the other hand, you can learn a lot by following first-class people and have a higher probability of success.

Determine current goals

Alan Kay, a master in the computer industry, has a famous saying: The best way to predict the future is to invent it. create it). Nothing will have the greatest impact on our future than the choices we make today. For newcomers to the workplace, I think there are a few things that need to be done right now.

1. Master a nirvana skill

The so-called nirvana skill is a skill that is enough to impress the interviewer and give you a job opportunity when you apply for a job.

During the interview, most people talked a lot about "uniting classmates, loving work, being diligent and brave", which made the interviewer feel sleepy. Because you haven't grasped the other party's needs at all. Nirvana skills are related to the specific job you are applying for, which requires job seekers to carefully understand the skill requirements of the job before looking for a job. For college students who want to get a good internship opportunity (non-technical), Excel is usually a good choice. Because in most companies, interns are usually hired by odd jobs, and Excel is the number one tool for doing odd jobs. Being good at doing odd jobs is often better than what school you graduated from.

2. Strengthen basic skills

Basic skills refer to those basic abilities required for most jobs. For people in the workplace, any position will involve two most important basic skills: communication skills and learning skills. How to practice communication skills? Writing is a great way to do that. Joel Spark, a well-known technology blogger, once said that when he recruits developers, the most important thing he values ????is writing ability. Because excellent articles mean that the person has excellent logic and the ability to think from others' perspective, both of which are critical and difficult to develop basic skills.

3. In-depth exploration of the job search direction

The so-called in-depth exploration requires three things: personal experience, doing everything possible to get things done, and communicating with experts. Without personal experience, many feelings are empty talk. This is why many newcomers in the workplace feel a big gap after starting work. Regarding personal experience, people immediately think of internships and part-time jobs, but in fact, many times you can start directly from your side. For example, many people want to enter the consulting industry. In fact, for consulting work, you can roll up your sleeves and start practicing without leaving campus. It can be as close as helping your roommate analyze how to catch a girl, or as far away as helping a restaurant outside the school analyze how to improve customer satisfaction. Degree, income, etc... As for how to find and communicate with experts, in this information age, it is no longer a difficulty. Weibo is a good channel.

4. Become a problem solver

When I was in college, I thought work was about work. Later, it dawned on me: People were paying me to solve problems. A very important reason why newcomers in the workplace are not welcomed is that they usually cannot solve many problems, but they create a lot of problems. From this perspective, in fact, more than 99.99% of resumes are unqualified. Almost no one talks about "how can I solve your problem", but shows their school, courses, practical experience, and charity experience. It's like going to a restaurant and the waiter is eager to show off his biceps for you. So whether it's a resume or an interview, the key point is "what problems can you solve" rather than "how good and cool am I". Remember, your value lies in your ability to solve real problems.