In my early 20’s, I felt tons of pressure to focus on one business, one idea, one career.
You read all these books that tout the law of focus.
“If you want to achieve anything meaningful, you must focus on one thing.”
They talk about how you have years and years to work on everything you’re interested in.
So focus on just one for this decade, then move onto the next.
I do believe this.
As someone who has fallen flat on his face by trying to do too many things at once, this advice is sound.
But, it comes with the caveat that I think this advice applies more to people that have been in the workforce for 5+ years.
When you come out of college, you have no idea what you’re going to enjoy doing for a living.
I advise playing around and trying some different things.
The problem with all this advice to focus on one thing is it comes along with the assumption that you’ve already figured out what gives you energy.
What makes you tick.
What you’re actually excited to talk to people about at a dinner party.
Of course it makes sense to completely sell out on a career or project that you love, but what if you don’t love anything you’re doing yet?
Can you imagine spending 10 years of your life working on something that you’re just kind of “meh” about?
The case for going all in on one thing:
You want to make more money. Let’s be brutally honest. For some people, maximizing income is the name of the game. If you’re in a position where money is everything whether it be for status or need, then yes, get focused and double down. That’s the quickest way to boost income. You have found something you love to work on. If you’ve found that career that makes you tick and keeps you up at night with excitment to get back to your desk the next day, then double down. You want a simple life. Focusing on one thing in your career will without a doubt make your life more simple. Do not take this one for granted. Anxiety comes from overwhelm and overwhelm comes from feeling like you can’t meet your life’s obligations. Having 4 or 5 different things you’re working on at one time will cause you anxiety. I can guarantee this.
The case for not going all in on one thing:
You haven’t found something you love doing yet. If you’re young in your career, yes, focus will acelerate you, but it will acelerate you down a specific path. What if you end up hating that path? 3 years of experience in Med School doesn’t make you more appealing to a architectual design firm. Don’t get me wrong, work is work and it’s not always fun, but don’t kid yourself into thinking you have to hate what you do for your entire life. Put in the extra effort and at least find a career that engages you. They are out there. But they (usually) don’t fall into your lap. You prefer excitement and fun over money. Tim Ferriss has a beautiful podcast episode about being a Jack of All Trades. His premise is that the beauty of being a jack of all trades is that you maximize your number of peak experiences in life which is reward in itself. You will make more money being a master of one, but you’ll have more fun being a jack of all trades. Would you rather be rich and bored out of your mind or love what you do and have enough money to enjoy it? You don’t have to generate lots of income. If you skipped college, don’t have debt, or live a simple life with low monthly expenses, then why the heck do you want to sit in a cubicle for your entire 20’s? At the end of the day, for most people, money isn’t everything. People want to have interesting life’s and careers and have well rounded interests. Saying “Yes” is fun and while it has it’s downsides, it provides a fun and exciting career that will lead to places you never would have imagined.
Parting words
This topic has been on my mind for a while now. Mostly because I have deep experiences with it.
I tried a bunch of things in my early 20’s and it created a miserable, anxiety filled career for a while.
But through that experience I discovered my deep interest in software engineering and I would have never discovered that interest had I stayed in my finance position in corporate america.
I’m not perfect and my advice isn’t for everyone, but I don’t regret trying a bunch of things and putting my income generation trajectory on hold for a while to discover a career path that I’m excited about.
Be smart with your time and money and don’t put yourself in a position where you have to work for money your entire life.
I fear for my generation as it’s full of people with no money who order every meal on door dash then complain that they can’t afford to move out of their parent house, go on a vacation, or try an new career that pays less but more closely aligns with their interests.