Don't Take Career Advice from Just Anyone

When I was 19, I was seriously considering architectural design as a career. I had studied technical drafting throughout high school, I loved sketching, had worked a bit in construction, and had grown up around the building trade. I figured it would be a perfect fit. I told someone at church what I was thinking and they said I should talk to Joe (not his real name) because he worked at a local architectural firm. I thought that would be great, getting an insider’s view on my potential new career.

I approached Joe, a single man in his early thirties, and enthusiastically shared my plan. I was shocked with his response. He told me, in no uncertain terms, that pursuing a career in architecture would be a terrible idea. He said the industry was flooded with help and, even though he had been working in it for a long time, he was having trouble making a good living. I remember leaving that conversation very disappointed.

Soon after that, an opportunity in manufacturing presented itself and I took it. Based solely on the warning I had received from Joe, I fully abandoned my architectural design career plans and entered a four-year tool and die apprenticeship. To be fair, manufacturing has been good to me, affording me a good, steady living for over 30 years, but sometimes I wonder what my life and career would have been like if I had pursued the other path.

Years later I had some interaction with Joe. He was still single and still barely surviving in the architectural trade. Because I was older and wiser and had been in the workforce for a while at this point, I recognized something that I didn’t pick up on before. I realized that Joe was the type of guy that probably wouldn’t do very well in any trade. He had a quirky personality and very little motivation and drive. I remember thinking that, even though he was a nice enough guy, I wouldn’t want him working for me.

That’s right, I had made a major career decision based on the advice of one person who I didn’t really even know. A person that, turns out, was not at all qualified to give me an accurate representation of an entire industry. Not my best move.

So, if you're looking for direction on a particular career path (or for any part of life, really), please be selective about who you talk to and, for goodness sake, be sure to speak with more than just one person. Proverbs 15:22 says that, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” Now that is good advice!

What bad (less than helpful) career advice have you received?