Episode 69: How I Chose My Top 3 Career Non-Negotiables

The Paradox of Choice is why you need to exercise discipline and choose your Top 3 Career Non-Negotiables for your next career move. It’s a game changer.

A Career Lesson from Milk & Tinder

Think about the last time you visited the milk aisle.

Did you notice the never-ending & growing number of OPTIONS?

There’s soy, almond, oat, 2%, low-fat, non-fat, skim, organic, lactose-free, and so on.

The average consumer makes their choice, but is often left wondering, “Did I make the right decision? Is there a better milk out there for me?”

In the 1950’s, there was one type of milk available, and people didn’t second-guess their decision. In fact, they were pretty damn happy with their milk.

This same concept applies in modern dating, with apps like Tinder.

In Aziz Anzari’s book “Modern Romance” (great book if you haven’t checked it out), he talks about how a 1932 sociological study that took place in Philly found that 1 in 3 married couples were people who had grown up within a 5-block radius.

Dating was simpler back then. There was a de-facto constraint in your dating pool. People had fewer options, and made decisions more quickly and with more confidence.

In today’s dating world, you have the entire world’s dating pool at your fingers. And yet, people are saying they’re more unhappy than ever with their dating lives.

Shouldn’t we be happier in today’s modern world, since we have so many more options?

Unfortunately, our brains aren’t wired that way. Welcome to the Paradox of Choice.

This concept was coined by American psychologist Barry Schwartz, who published a book by the same title.

The Paradox of Choice refers to the idea that having an abundance of options actually requires more effort to make a decision and can leave us feeling unsatisfied with our choice.

He discovered that there is a fine line between having the freedom to choose what you want and being paralyzed in the face of too many options.

This same concept applies to the career exploration stage, as you decide what you will do next.

To help you reduce the sense of overwhelm and confusion, I introduce to you the Top 3 Career Non-Negotiables.

On this episode, I share what a career non-negotiable is (and isn’t), and how I chose mine when I transitioned into consulting from the education non-profit (they were geography, compensation and work-balance related).

If you want to feel less overwhelmed during your career change journey, this is the episode for you.

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