“Do what you must” or “What I definitely do not want to be at 50”

Many of you may have been visited by seditious thought, “Am I doing what I owe?” Are you on the right track? Are you really spending the time allotted to you on the planet for the necessary and significant things? Is it worth it to do what you do? How to find your destination and not regret the wasted years? Let us indulge in philosophy in order to once again comprehend our mission.

The problem indicated in the title, I am sure, has been visited by more than one generation of talented people. Yes, and why necessarily talented? At least just those who want to achieve at least something in life. I’ll make a reservation right away, I’m writing this text under the lasting impression of more than a week from the article “You and Your Work” .
Yes, indeed, I would like to be remembered for the work that I do. But do we always do what we need? How to spend your time with maximum benefit? Treatises on project management are full of slogans about the need to increase labor efficiency and other "nonsense" (everyone certainly understands that this is not nonsense, but they are afraid to say it out loud). Moreover, efficiency is an external (objective) manifestation, a result divided by the costs of its achievement. But what about the subjective assessment by a person of his work? What if the subjective costs and the subjective result do not coincide with external evaluations of the work done by a person on the part of other people. Moreover, the bias here can be both in that and in the other direction. For example, a guru may consider his costs to be insignificant, having actually done something unbelievable from the point of view of others. Or vice versa, an employee who does not have outstanding abilities, having done something incredible (from his own point of view) and really overpowered himself in something, jumping above his head, may, having received not very high marks from those around him, simply lose his motivation and desire do something further. I am sure that there are ways to avoid this, i.e. to achieve a state in which you will be both maximally effective both from the internal (subjective) and from the external (objective) point of view. simply lose motivation and desire to do something in the future. I am sure that there are ways to avoid this, i.e. to achieve a state in which you will be both maximally effective both from the internal (subjective) and from the external (objective) point of view. simply lose motivation and desire to do something in the future. I am sure that there are ways to avoid this, i.e. to achieve a state in which you will be both maximally effective both from the internal (subjective) and from the external (objective) point of view.

Self motivation

Here I would like to discuss how my own (subjective) assessment of the importance and usefulness of the work performed by a particular person affects his (self) motivation. We are all engaged in various projects. Each of us has some own opinion about the real usefulness of these projects for other people. Surely many of you would prefer to work on a project that they subjectively assess as more useful and important for humanity, perhaps even if they pay more for a less important project (a holivar on this topic is possible). I don’t mean that you need to work on some important projects for free, I just mean that the real usefulness of the project from the point of view of its own participant is a very, very serious motivator, perhaps even more serious than material reward. This idea was further strengthened in my head against the background of the search for a new employee to participate in one of our projects. The specifics of this project is such that it is rather difficult for a new employee not to plunge into the project to realize its real usefulness and significance level for other people, although in reality they are very high both from the point of view of people already participating in the project and from the point of view of clients ( final product consumers). I think many managers face this problem, because to present the project in an advantageous way for the applicant in the case of complex or specific projects is a rather difficult task. In such a case, increasing the level of internal motivation of a new employee becomes a very difficult task for a manager if the employee does not have an initial level of interest.
So how do you make sure that every day ends with the absolute certainty that you have made the most out of what you could? I believe that for this, first of all, you need to concentrate on two things: 1) what you are doing (what your job is) and 2) for whom you are doing it.

What are you doing?

If a person knows the answer to this question, then his internal goals are consistent with external ones. In this context, the local I mean by internal goals that everyone personally wants to achieve, and under the external - is what results from the people waiting for the other. For example, if the answer to the question “what are you doing” is “I make money”, then it’s less important what kind of work you do to achieve this goal, if it is well paid (this approach is consistent with your internal goals - you will receive a good reward, so with external ones - the project will be made, no matter how strange it may be). If the answer is “I make a cool product”, then please be really fit this goal, do not write shit and do not let others do it. A rather serious problem is when a person answers the first question “I do what is asked of me”, because this means that he either does not have internal goals, or they strongly disagree with external ones, which negatively affects the quality and effectiveness of such an employee.
I would like to urge everyone: first of all, do what you like and that is consistent with your internal goals, because only really great things can be done. Doing something that you don’t like, out of a desire to achieve only external (“alien”) goals, can sometimes be effective from the point of view of the project and other people’s assessment of the results of your work, but this is unlikely to last long (without a high level of self-motivation, you just burn out or be lazy), such work will not bring you satisfaction in the long run. I look with horror at the mood of many representatives of the IT industry, expressed in lenten faces, high self-esteem and statements such as "I’m doing something, my salary is still fine if I go somewhere else." Were global corporations created with such sentiments? Was this the attitude of the engineers designing the next Boeing model, the designers drawing the contours of the new Lamborghini, the electronics engineers developing the new Intel processor? Just think: in the world every day a huge number of people create incredible things! Why do not you want to be among them? Are you really ready to waste your life, your abilities, your internal “spark” for nothing, for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, full confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them. Designing the next Boeing model, Designers drawing the contours of the new Lamborghini, Electronics engineers developing the new Intel processor? Just think: in the world every day a huge number of people create incredible things! Why do not you want to be among them? Are you really ready to waste your life, your abilities, your internal “spark” for nothing, for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, full confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them. Designing the next Boeing model, Designers drawing the contours of the new Lamborghini, Electronics engineers developing the new Intel processor? Just think: in the world every day a huge number of people create incredible things! Why do not you want to be among them? Are you really ready to waste your life, your abilities, your internal “spark” for nothing, for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, full confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them. developing a new Intel processor? Just think: in the world every day a huge number of people create incredible things! Why do not you want to be among them? Are you really ready to waste your life, your abilities, your internal “spark” for nothing, for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, full confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them. developing a new Intel processor? Just think: in the world every day a huge number of people create incredible things! Why do not you want to be among them? Are you really ready to waste your life, your abilities, your internal “spark” for nothing, for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, full confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them. for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, complete confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them. for the sake of [often imaginary] reliability, self-insurance, stability, complete confidence in the future? Are you ready to take risks and do something incredible right now? What is in your way? Doubt, self-doubt, reluctance to leave the comfort zone - all these are imaginary obstacles, you just need to change your point of view to get rid of them.

Returning to the age of 50 at the beginning of the article. It would seem that where does 50? It seems to me that 50 years is the age when it’s too late to start self-actualizing. At least some achievements need to be achieved earlier. Speaking unvarnished, 50 years is the age when there is still a lot of strength, but it’s too late to find use for them. Late to learn a new profession, late to change attitudes towards life. At 50, it makes sense to look at what has been done, to comprehend this and move on, but hardly “fifty” is a good moment to startpaths (although all this is a topic for another holivar, because readers may give counterexamples when people found themselves at the age of 50, while not achieving anything at an earlier age). Imagine a software developer who is 50 years old and wants to get a new job. In order to win the competition among other, younger applicants, he must have incredible qualities: have very rich experience in various fields, be a guru of some kind of modern technology, have the skills of a manager or architect, because ceteris paribus, preference will most likely be given to the younger candidate. Think about it.

Focus on the goal

Let's say you have decided what you will do or now alreadyare doing. Found some area of ​​activity. But what if you are still not sure that this is really the thing of your life? Here, many fall into the trap of doubt. Without a clear confidence in achieving the goal, many give up, fail to give everything in, they constantly rush about trying to cling to one thing or the other. I believe that in order to really do something, to make it possible to understand whether it was worth doing it at all, you need to forget all doubts and concentrate fully on the matter, i.e. just do your job with maximum effort, do what you should. When applying for a job, many candidates answer the question “What goals do you want to achieve by working with us, what are your plans for the next 5 years?” They answer with a doubt “Well, I’ll work, I'll see how it goes.” For me this is not the option which I would like to hear. The correct answer for me would be “I will make every effort to get more experience and to do my job qualitatively; if it seems to me that this activity is not suitable for me, I will immediately say about it so that we do not waste each other’s time. ” No need to crouch before anyone. Tell me frankly (to yourself and others): I will only do what I like and will do it to the limit of my abilities. If you don’t like something, tell your leader, for example, and preferably reasonably. Tell me frankly (to yourself and others): I will only do what I like and will do it to the limit of my abilities. If you don’t like something, tell your leader, for example, and preferably reasonably. Tell me frankly (to yourself and others): I will only do what I like and will do it to the limit of my abilities. If you don’t like something, tell your leader, for example, and preferably reasonably.
I beg you, do not waste your life, your time, for doing things that you don’t like or that you think are not important: at 50 you will definitely regret having done them. On the contrary, having found a cause to which you have a soul, make every effort to do it well. Here I would like to return to the second important point: “for whom are you doing this?”

Who are you doing this for?

When above I so categorically urged to do only what I like, it might seem to you that I urge you to work “only for yourself”, to achieve my own goals. But work is an activity aimed at satisfying the needs of other people (© Wikipedia). You cannot do a good job without caring for the interests and goals of others. When doing something, always think about those for whom you are doing it. It is very important to always receive feedback as often as possible: is what you do really important and necessary for others, do they get the result they want from you? Those who watched the series " Silicon Valley"(rather dumb, but containing a certain amount of truth in a grotesque form), they will probably recall the situation when some of the Hooli employees (didn’t write in Russian, because it looks like a swear word) remained at work and received money but there was no real work for them and they had to mess around, which they suffered very much psychologically. Do not allow such a situation, you can fall into the trap of this imaginary comfort ("Nobody wants anything from me now, so I did all that he could and that he should ” ). Such a situation will quickly lead to your personal degradation. Instead, always think, “what else can I do?” Think, for example, about what you will talk about if you suddenly find yourself at an interview at Google or Microsoft.

So that the above does not seem to be just a stream of consciousness, I will outline the main thoughts that I tried to convey:
1) Find the courage to do something in accordance with your internal goals, forgetting for some time about the external. Find yourself. Find the area in which you like and in which you can prove yourself. Do not do what the soul does not lie to. Stock up on enough knowledge to take the first step. Drop all doubts and do it. There is a risk, but it is justified.
2) If you decide to do something, do it as well as possible, at the limit of your capabilities. Divide your time into work (“business”) and rest. Do not be mercantile and do not spare yourself, this approach will pay off handsomely. If the task requires additional time, find it. Minor questions about whether this time will be paid, whether you will receive a bonus for “working for more than 8 hours” are secondary to the business you are doing. The fact that the thing will be donedue to the fact that you will give him a little more of your time, an order of magnitude more important. When you focus on the business that you like, you can no longer buy, because you decide where the limit to the application of your efforts is, what is the level of quality of the work you are doing so that you yourself will not be ashamed of yourself for what you have done. If your approach of “how much I’ve been paid is the way I work”, just quit this job and do something else. If you feel that you can work at least 5% better than you work, change your job. Find your limit.
3) Always get feedback on the results of your work from other people. Do not be afraid of this connection, whether it is positive or negative. Always use it for your future achievements, regarding it only as a motivator. They told you that you made a “poop” - great, now you know how not to do it next time, that is, do not waste your strength in vain. Feedback is the only way to understand where to go next, where to direct your development.

Regarding the question posed in the title of the article, at the age of 50 I definitely do not want to be:
a) a person working without a clear personal goal
b) a person performing such work that is well paid for, and not one that you like
c) a person who is not sure that the previous years of his life were spent with the greatest possible dedication.
Anticipating questions in the comments, I am now 29 years old, I am doing what I should and trying as much as possible to follow the approach described in the article. Probably, like many, I could work better. I suggest discussing how this can be achieved in the comments, for the sake of which I raised this topic.

Are you sure that you are doing exactly what you should? Do you make every effort to do this? If not, what bothers you? Are you still looking for yourself? 50 years just around the corner, let's get started! All good and good luck in self-realization.