People often use the terms ‘Job’ and ‘Career’ in the same context without realizing the difference in their meanings. However, your understanding of what a job is and what a career is goes a long way in deciding how you plan for your future. You may be employed in a certain job but it does not necessarily have to be in line with your career goals. A job is nothing but your current position of employment. You could be having a job as a waiter at a fast food outlet, a salesperson at a departmental store, the regional head of a corporate giant or an assistant to the local dentist. Thousands of college students each year take up part time jobs to fund their education.
A career, on the other hand, is the collective outcome of efforts and achievements, one helping and/or leading to another. This would include your education, training and, of course, the jobs that you hold on the way to attaining your career objective. A popular term among corporate HR circles is ‘Career Path’. This is a graph where an employee’s predicted progress from his/her current position is plotted and efforts required to reach each point determined. A career needs thorough planning and execution while a job is an employment agreement.
You will notice that most successful people who have a career of their choice started their journey early. Whether you want to be a doctor, an engineer, a movie star, a CEO or own a successful business, you need to plan in advance so that all effort is directed towards attaining a particular career motive. For instance, if you are interested in the field of Human Resources, you would need to take up relevant educational courses in college, back it up with necessary diplomas and training and then seek a job that will mark your entry in HR field, from where you work to take your career further.
