Career Motivators: What Drives Me?

Part II: Career Motivators - What Drives Me

Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Knowing what you want in a career is better than following where a path leads. I have uncovered a few personal motivators by going through the book "Get the Job You Want Even When No One's Hiring."

In addition to motivation, one must find meaning in what they do. A meaningful job to me is one that helps people, has personal meaning and connection to your life, a job that comes naturally with not extreme efforts, is fun, brings lots of opportunity and challenge.

Here are a few of my motivators, many of which are tied to my career values.

• problem solving, finding an answer, research, solving hard problems, motivated to learn and solve difficult problems, finding the best solution
• teaching, helping, knowledge
• nice personality, smart
• communication skills
• saving money

Do my motivators align with my career direction? I am considering a career that involves business, analysis and builds upon my background in science.

Career Similarities and Differences
The differences between a scientific job and marketing research: you do not have to work with dangerous chemicals. Data sets for marketing can be larger and more complex than scientific data. Correlations tend to be weaker for measuring consumer behavior vs. scientific behavior.

Scientists are less concerned with the cost of doing research, where as market researchers are more concerned with the bottom line.

In general, I see marketing research as being a more people oriented job than a scientific researcher. Another career I am considering is product manager. Product manager involves more sales and is the most people oriented job of the ones I am considering. Finally the internet marketing job involves less people interaction, is more aligned with internet marketing, but involves the ability to respond to change quickly.

Product manager, marketing research and internet marking involve knowing the needs of the market. Knowing the market is not as readily translatable to the scientist's career. Both marketing research and internet marketing involve a lot of technology and writing skills. Product management and internet marketing are driven by sales and budgets.

Characteristics of a Scientist:
1. Inquisitive
2. Explorative
3. Persistent
4. Creative
5. Analytical

Characteristics of a Marketing Research:

1. scientific method — observation, hypothesis, prediction, and testing.
2. innovative ways to solve a problem
3. multiple methods to acquire data and shy away from over-reliance on any one method
4. base your research efforts on solid models
5. relationship between the value of information and its cost
6. clearly sees the market
7. win-win-win for company, the product and the customers

Characteristics of a Product Manager

1. passion to sell great products
2. empathy
3. humility
4. self-awareness
5. tenacity
6. decisiveness
7. innovativeness
8. confidence
9. focus
10. persuasiveness
    

Characteristics of an Internet Marketer

1. Adaptive/Pro active
2. Should have TAS (think Ahead Systematically) approach
3. Should know exactly the requirements of the business
4. Recognize the long term goals
5. has a personalized brand
6. knows the needs of the market
7. Should be able to write great content
8. Traffic increase
9. Maximize the budget
   

Career Potential: What Are My Values?

What Are My Core Career Values?

I am reading a book that I should have read years ago. But then years ago we were not in the recession that we are coming out of. The book is "Get the Job You Want, Even When No One's Hiring."

Instead of following the trail of hot job areas, the book walks you through a career soul search.

I am currently working on the values clarification section and this is what I've learned about myself. This is what I value in order of most to least important. Some of this I knew already but it is time to use this information to look to my career future.

Career Values: I feel strongly about

1. Logic/Analysis/ Challenge/Overcoming Obstacles: research, look at data, solve challenging problems, experiment, figure out how things work
2. Collaboration/Teamwork: social, collaborate, integrate in to a team, nice personality, like to help people
3. Adventure/Discovery/Creativity/Innovation: create, explore, go on an adventure
4. Management/ Leadership: leadership, take responsibility, dedicated
5. Education and Knowledge: learning, teaching
6. Communication: good at presenting
7. Technical Competency: worked in technical jobs
8. Money/Wealth/Power/Influence: sales
9. Control People/ Projects: develop a project

This tells me that my main motivator is analysis, discovery and learning in a collaborative environment. I should seek a job that allows me to use both my analytical and social skills. These are typically two skills might be viewed as opposites. If I remember correctly, my Myers Briggs is ENTJ (extraversion, intuition, thinking, judgment).

One of the inconsistencies with working as a scientist is that it can be a solitary job. Being that I am a social teamwork oriented person I would like to find a career that involves more interaction with people.