Where Your Interests and Skills Meet

As kids, it’s easy to blur the lines between what we love and what we want to become. For example, enjoying reading as a child might lead you to dream of becoming a bestselling author one day. However, life doesn’t always unfold as expected. You might end up pursuing a different path, like becoming a doctor or a business professional. While this can be disappointing, it doesn’t have to be the end of your passion pursuits. Not being an expert in a specific area doesn’t mean you can’t work in a related field.

Imagine each skill you possess existing on a spectrum, with different careers that utilize that skill along the scale. Simultaneously, your passions also have varying aspects on their own spectrum. The goal is to identify the point where these two scales meet. In the case of the fiction and business example, where would these two areas intersect? Perhaps you can’t write novels yourself, but your business background could land you a role in a publishing company’s marketing department. Your love for literature combined with your business acumen could make you a valuable asset in that setting.

However, some talents and passions may not align as neatly. Take being a doctor, for instance, where there might not be obvious links to the fiction world other than offering medical expertise. But if you have the interest, then acquire the skill! For instance, I know a doctor who, despite lacking formal writing training, gradually worked on a novel in his free time over the years, eventually getting it published. While he may not be a bestseller, he was able to break into the industry through his own persistence.

It’s important not to feel confined by the paths you didn’t take earlier in life. Opportunities exist, whether through discovering the intersection point of your skills and passions or carving out a new way forward on your own terms.