'Jobs' or 'Careers'

There are a few things that perpetually occupy the mind of a recent university graduate.  The first is: how am I going to pay off all those loans?  The second is, what I am going to do from 9-5?  If you're anything like me, you have big plans, but don't quite know how to realize them.  Or, perhaps more correctly, you don't understand how what you're currently doing (work wise) is going to get you there. 

If you consulted career columns or books on this type of advice, they'd probably tell you what you must do in order to market yourself effectively.  Their advice usually goes like this: put this on your cv; never put that on your cv.  If you get an interview, play up how you can help the company, or organization achieve its goals: play down what you expect from the company or organization in return.  

And for the most part this is solid advice. 

However, after two years slumming in the post-graduate scene, I've come to understand that success in the working world is really just a frame of mind.  Rather than focusing on what type of job or career you want, start focusing on whether you want a 'job', or a 'career.'  

The way to begin is realizing that yes, there is a major difference between the two, and yes, having your mind on the 'job' track, or the 'career' track, can have an impact on the paths you take in your working life.  

So what am I talking about?  

A 'job' implies something to fill that space between 9-5.  You don't necessarily take it home with you, and it isn't necessarily that difficult.  (For you professionals already standing on firm ground in the working world, think about what you did in high school.)  It fills your wallet to provide and pay the bills, but it isn't fulfilling.  Now, this doesn't mean that it doesn't require an education, or thought to do.  But generally speaking, this is a short term gig.  Think about all the famous actors who had several odd 'jobs' during the early days.  Jobs as I have defined them, aren't necessarily something you can directly build upon.  However, and this is a big however, you can take the skills you learn, and apply them elsewhere.  But they don't always help you plant your feet in a different area of the working world.  'Careers' on the other hand, are different.  

If you are looking for a 'career', you're looking for something you can directly build upon.  By that I mean you can keep working in the same area, but move on and often move up.  Getting bigger contracts, working within a wider network.  Go from regional to national.  When you approach the working world in this way, looking for a 'career' can actually maximize your potential to achieve what you want to achieve, or change whatever it is you want to change.  And you continue to build.  This is the key difference between 'jobs' and 'careers'.  The former may build your experience indirectly.  But the latter will build it in a more direct way.  

Approaching the work force with a 'career' in mind will help you quickly identify the occupations you want to avoid, and move you closer to getting on the road to success (my apologies for the unavoidable cliche).