Follow Your Skill vs Follow Your Passion.

A reflection on Plato’s Republic and career choice - Books II-IV

What are you going to be when you grow up? This is the question addressed to us from a very young age all the way to some time in adulthood when career worth is attained. In secondary education, we start to form career paths hoping a young student will know exactly what their interests are. We then educate them for this career path and address career and college ready rigor in their curriculum.

The beauty of America is that a student is not locked into this career path and often they are educated to take advantage of multiple paths so as to change at any time in life.

On the options presented; do what we do best to contribute to society vs doing what makes you happy regardless if it contributes to society or not, we have the choice to do either at any time in our life. Often, after a socially productive career, many people change to a career that is not socially productive but provides personal pleasure. This is the beauty of democracy, true freedom, appropriate to reflect on as we approach our Independence Day celebration.

Strengths of the productive career for society is obvious. We would have a society where all needs are able to be met and services would be provided by highly trained and skilled citizens. The negative to this is the loss of personal freedom. If an individual is satisfied but has no other choice, they become tied to a wall staring at the same images such as what was presented in Plato’s allegory, The Cave. The other negative is that this represents an extreme socialist form of government that dictates the equitable distribution of labor, among other necessities.

In a society where there is choice to support multiple occupations throughout a lifetime, including a career that isn’t productive, there is the chance that there will be shortages and incompetencies in services needed. This happens currently today. Career supply and demand do provide some relief but specialized careers are still lacking in areas of education, medical and other highly skilled careers that become necessary for a civil society. The positive is that we have the freedom to choose, develop and follow our dreams. A satisfying career provides happiness for the individual and competent service for society.

Advice to someone chasing a “dream”, go for it but know when it’s time to check into reality. There are many satisfying careers that may not be exactly what you dreamed, however; you can attain satisfaction in a career that not only benefits society but also provides a wage to fulfill your necessities while continuing to pursue your dreams.

The question then becomes, “What is a civil (just) society and how much should the guardians (government) dictate individuals so as to attain and maintain civility?”