Post MBA career myths- Part 2: The MBA will help you leave a job you hate
“I don’t really know what I want to do but I will do the MBA because I really hate my job and I can’t figure out how to switch to something else. So I’ll do the MBA and then I can figure out what I want to do next, but it will definitely have to be something I love”.
Does this sound like you?
That was also me. And that thought stayed with me throughout the MBA. By the end of the MBA, I was still hoping I would magically and suddenly figure it out.
I felt ashamed and vulnerable. My job was not fulfilling, I had just become an MBA and I still didn’t know what I wanted to do. But I was ashamed to admit it. I had just spent tens of thousands of pounds on my studies and I still didn’t have an answer.
What I had is the pressure to get a job and a bigger salary. I couldn’t be an unemployed MBA who didn’t know what to do!
So guess what? I said yes to jobs similar to what I had already done because it was easy to get them. You’ll find that your business schools’ careers services will encourage you to do the same: look at what you’ve done already, and go do more of that. It’s a sure bet.
If you hate what you do now, the MBA is not your ticket out. I have spoken to tens of MBAs and in reality, even after graduation, most are just as unhappy with their jobs as when they went in.
The MBA opens your mind and challenges you but it is not a career tool. In fact, after graduation, you will feel under pressure to get a job so you can get your return on investment. And the likelihood is you will respond to opportunities that seem more likely to give you that.
The truth is the only way the MBA can help you get away from jobs you hate is if you spend time understanding what kind of work is satisfying for you. You need to work on figuring out what inspires and motivates you. This is work you have to do outside the MBA.
You’re responsible for making the change happen for you.
Here are a few questions to ask yourself:
- What gives me meaning?
- What gives me pleasure? What makes me feel great about myself?
- What are my skills? Which ones do I enjoy the most?
- What motivates me?
- What do I do that causes time to feel differently? What causes me to lose track of time?
- What do I love enough to do for free? Why?
I really encourage you to do this. Be unreasonable with your answers. If you start thinking ‘but that doesn’t pay’ or ‘I am not good enough at that’, you are already allowing fear in the driving seat. Instead, focus on writing down your answers and your dreams. Then ask yourself: assuming success, how would I make that happen?
The reason I was able to find work that is truly satisfying, to leave the corporate world and have my own business is because I did all that. But I also remember the misery of not knowing. So now I spend most of my working life supporting MBAs to really get the sense of fulfilment, achievement and contribution they crave from their careers.
This is part two of a five part series. Stay tuned for part three which will be tomorrow.
