Your college major matters
In most cases, it can have an influence but doesn’t necessarily determine your career path in life. Sure, a few degrees will have a tremendous impact, like a degree in law or medicine. However, majoring in engineering doesn’t guarantee a larger paycheck or more successful career than majoring in accounting. On the other hand, it would be much harder to major in philosophy and expect the same amount of money as an engineer—but still entirely possible. In the end, it all depends on your company’s core business. The core business is what you would ideally have a degree in. I don’t care much for those average salary charts by major. I know plenty of people whose salaries don’t fit into those buckets. For instance, I hang out with several liberal arts majors who are in their early thirties and make six figures a year. I also work at an engineering company—where many of the engineers don’t make six figures.
You should work for a big, successful company
At a large corporation, you’re basically a number. There are a lot of other people just like you. The odds are, you will not rise to an executive position—it’s simply a numbers game. Also, many large corporations have already experienced their peak years of growth. Growth is really the critical factor here. You want to work for a growing company, no matter its size. Working for a large corporation is safer, but you will make sacrifices in the area of promotions and work experience. You will have higher risk with a smaller company, but a much bigger potential for a large payout. It really depends on what you’re comfortable with. I’ve worked for some giant corporations and I was never really happy with any of them. You have to figure out what’s right for you.
Relationships are essential to a successful career
In my experience, this is absolutely true. If you can’t work with the people on your team, you will be at a serious disadvantage. Sometimes, people put too much emphasis on these relationships. For example, having a great relationship with your boss and peers at a dying company is a losing situation. Don’t lose sight of the bigger picture. You want to have great relationships at a growing company. This will go a long way in helping you advance to the next level.
You have to work hard to be successful
There couldn’t be a bigger myth out there. Hard work won’t hurt you, but it doesn’t necessarily help you either. I’ve seen plenty of promotions given out based on relationships as opposed to hard work or the ability to get things done. Everyone knows somebody who received an unfair promotion. Don’t be naive and be ready to leave if things don’t pan out. Hard work pays off in having a plan to leave when things go south. Make sure you’re working just as hard at having a backup plan as you are at your actual job. I cannot stress this enough.
I should change jobs at least every three years
Not if you’re happy. There are a lot of reasons to leave a job: better salary, more opportunity, better benefits, better security…. Don’t leave a job because a certain amount of time has passed. Leave a job for a logical and rational decision. I have also found that it’s much easier to get promotions by leaving a company than it is to stay with the same company and try to rise up. However, don’t leave a company if you’re happy there. I think most people would stay with the same company forever if they continually got what they wanted. It’s when you don’t get what you deserve that it’s time to look at employment elsewhere.
I want to spend my entire career with one company
Good luck. Most people I know who have done this tend to be non-professionals.
My career is in my control
It’s not. Most people I know struggle with this concept. Most people believe they will be successful if they have the right degree, work hard, and consistently deliver. Nothing could be further from the truth. In the end, you’ll have to be lucky too. You can’t control luck. It’s all about being in the right place at the right time. Executives will vehemently argue against this point—they will claim that they rose to the top through hard work and intelligence. Don’t believe it. In the end, they just got lucky. There’s always someone better out there, they just might not have had the good fortune to be in the right place at the right time. Success should also be measured over a long period of time; luck can turn on a whim, and wealthy, successful people right now often end up downtrodden later. Do what you can to improve your odds, but realize it’s all a game and that sometimes the cards won’t come your way.