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How much money do you get in a normal career?

Because I wanna work on a job that gives you enough money. #money #career #career-choice

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Thank you comment icon A lot of jobs have different payroll range. It really depends on your position and what your job is. Careers also follow supply and demand. So jobs that are in demand will have higher paying jobs. For example, computer scientists, engineers, physicians, etc will have higher paying jobs. Ramtin
Thank you comment icon Also I believe the average median salary in the US is about 40-60K. Most importantly though is that individuals with a college degree have a higher salary so aim high! Ramtin
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Wayne’s Answer

Hello Michelle. I like Anthony's advice above which covers some really good points that need to be considered. I would like to add a couple others.

You mention "career" in the question. Consider that a career is a life long journey and not a short term event like a particular job. There should be at least a couple considerations when selecting a job and only one of them is the money. Yes, you need to make enough money to make ends meet, but a bigger question is "why am I working?" Is it just to get a paycheck or is there something else you want out of a job and eventual career? What are you passionate about and what do you enjoy doing? A job that pays "enough" can be a real burden and strain on your emotions while a job that you enjoy will be invigorating even if you have to struggle a little with finances.

There have been several times during my career where I have been forced to change jobs and had to take jobs which paid less than I needed. However, by doing those jobs well, I was promoted to bigger and better jobs where the money was not a concern any longer. If you just work for a paycheck, it will show in your work and employers tend to overlook those individuals when making promotion decisions because they want folks who are driven by other factors.

My recommendation is to first discover what you are good at and what your passions are. These will change over time as you get more experience and as circumstances change so being aware of this and willing to adjust to those changes is a must.

Now, you ask "how do I discover my strengths and what my passions are?" There are several ways to do this. I like to recommend getting the book "Strengths Finder 2.0" and taking the on line survey to help identify your strengths. These are not often visible until you learn what to look for so this survey helps to highlight some key areas where you show a definite strength, as well as areas where you might want to work on improving. The strengths are typically transferable between different jobs so there are a lot of possibilities to exhibit them. Next I would recommend discussing these results with your school councilors, teachers and possibly other professionals you know. Most of these folks will be more than willing to offer their advice and thoughts on how to build on the strengths as well as how to strengthen the weaknesses.

For your passions i would recommend looking at what you like to do both in your coursework at school as well as your hobbies. If you search out opportunities in the areas of you passions, you will find ways to exercise your strengths and you will find not only the money to make ends meet, but you will be happier along the way.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do!

Wayne recommends the following next steps:

Take the Strengths Finder 2.0 survey
Discuss results with school councilors, teachers, professionals, etc.
Look for what you enjoy doing
Find and talk to people in those fields and look for opportunities.
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Anthony’s Answer

Michelle,

Hi there, interesting question. Having "enough" money is very important; working a normal career could mean many things. It sounds like you want stability. My advice is less of a direction and more a frame of mind. When thinking about work, consider why you get paid. Like anything else, the value of work is determined by supply and demand. That means, you are paid based on a couple of factors:

1. How many people are capable of performing the job - this is so important in regards to how much a job will pay. If "just anyone" can do the work, it likely will not pay very much because there is a high number of people available who are capable of doing the work (this keeps the wage low). If you want to earn more, you must learn or develop a skill that is not so common.

2. What value do you provide to your employer -another often overlooked consideration when categorizing jobs or thinking about pay is the connection to the end product. That is the real basis for an employee's pay. Business owners, like everyone else, are constantly faced with alternatives. When you go shopping, you are looking for a product to fill a need or want. How much you are willing to pay for the product is unique to you and your situation. What you consider a good price for what you get back. Well, the business owner is no different. They are looking for something from you (your labor) to achieve a business outcome. The value of that business outcome is usually fixed, which means your contribution to that outcome is what is primarily the basis of your compensation. The more value you provide to the business, the more they are willing to pay you.

So to tie this all together, if you want a "normal" job that "pays enough", you need to develop your skills. You need to identify where you can create value in the world and recognize why someone would want to pay you for it. Once you do that, the rest will work itself out. Find a skill, specialize, make yourself invaluable and you will be paid accordingly. Hope some of this helps.

Best,

Anthony
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