Two Types of People

For most people, their first salaried job wasn’t something they want to work as. That was certainly the case for me.

From starting out as a cashier for a supermarket chain, and now to working in software — it taught me that there’s two types of people when it comes to career (and probably life):

1. Someone who learns to tolerate and love with the work they’re doing.
2. Someone who only loves work that they deem is innate to them.

“There is only one way and that is your way.” C.G. Jung

The Winding Road

Right out of secondary school, I begrudgingly had to work as a cashier to support my family. It paid minimum wage but at least it had overtime. My bank account went from just existing to being an important part of my life — I was adulting.

Few months after, I found another job. This time with slighly higher pay, more responsibilities, and a lot of more processes.

“Maybe this is not so bad after all.”, I told myself. If I keep working, switch jobs or aim for seniority while also have my spending habits under control, I could live a decent life. But I know deep down, I felt like the work I’m doing wasn’t important. I felt like I was missing out. I could be doing so much more than scanning groceries and counting paper notes.

I started to feel unhappy about the work I’m doing.

Switched to different jobs, different industry — it all felt the same to me. It didn’t help that I didn’t have the opportunity to do tertiary study as money was tight when you’re raised by a single mom. It felt like I’m wasting my life away.

But throughout these odd years in my life. I noticed that some people still managed to put a smile on their face, willing to work it through. I envy them. Maybe the source of unhappiness was just me. “If they’re able to enjoy and love their work, why can’t I?”, that’s what I set out to do — how do I learn to love or find enjoyment no matter the type of work I’m doing?

I did that for about 5 years of my life — I realized that I’m not that person at all…

… that is until I started working with software. I felt so much more content with the work I was doing. It felt so cerebral. I self-taught myself to get into this field and I wished I had done it sooner. The work feels like play to me.

I started to feel happy about the work I’m doing.

Back in secondary school, I had a profound interest in mathematics. There was a point where I rediscovered π. Turns out the math I was learning beyond my school curriculum laid a foundation for how I approach problem-solving — and I’ve been using this part of my brain ever since I became a software engineer.

I realized I’m the second type of person.

But the journey that led me to this conclusion was quite painful. I felt lost throughout the entire time. I was thinking about going back to school but how do I go through a 3-4 years of study knowing that’s half of the household income gone? I was a victim of my circumstances and the only way to move forward is to not be the victim anymore. I took action and took risks. I believed in myself. In the end, I’m grateful that the outcome was in my favor.

The Compass

I’ve come to the revelation that it doesn’t matter whether you classify yourself as one of the two people I described above. Everyone’s path is different and there is no right answers. What matters is if you have faith in yourself or not. And if you had tuned your compass to this fact, you will save yourself a lot of time from experimenting or veering off to roads that you think might work because it’s different.

So start believing in yourself. Take that risk. You are more capable than you thought.