How to choose a career path that fits you

Match the role to how your mind works

❌ Don’t pick people-heavy careers if talking all day drains you

• Sales, consulting, client-facing roles need constant interaction.
• If conversations exhaust you, this will burn you out — slowly.

❌ Don’t pick unclear roles if you need structure

• Startups, strategy, product roles often have no clear instructions.
• If ambiguity makes you anxious, you’ll feel lost, not challenged.

❌ Don’t pick fast-paced roles if you like deep focus

• Ops, program management, agency work require juggling many things at once.
• If you prefer finishing one task before starting another, this will feel chaotic.

❌ Don’t pick high-visibility careers if you hate self-promotion

• Marketing, leadership tracks, business development reward speaking up.
• If you prefer quiet, behind-the-scenes work, this will feel uncomfortable.

❌ Don’t pick “stable” careers if growth matters to you right now

• Some government or highly regulated roles grow slowly.
• Great for stability — frustrating if you want momentum.

Final thought
Most career stress isn’t about skill.
It’s about fit.

Choose a role that matches how your mind works —
not just what looks impressive.

Follow your fascination, not the money or your passion

Everyone gives you career advice.
"Follow the money."
"Follow your passion."
And both are confusing as hell.

Follow the money?
Sure, you might get rich.
But if you hate what you do, you'll be miserable.
And here's the thing: if you don't enjoy it, you probably won't get good at it.
Which means the money thing might not even happen.

Follow your passion?
Okay... but what IS my passion?

See? Confusing.

One of the speakers at the Ted Talk event that I went to was Bill Gurley, a billionaire.
He gave this career advice that I found so insightful:

"Follow your fascination."

He told a story.
His friend had the LSAT exam the next day.
Law school. The whole plan was set.
The friend was having dinner with his uncle.
And he said, "I don't even want to take this exam."
His uncle looked at him and said:
"You keep talking about food. Why don't you do something with that?"

I don't remember if the guy took the exam or not.
But I know what he DID do.
He followed his fascination with food.

And he ended up opening multiple chains of a popular burger place in the US.
Because he was fascinated by food. He couldn't stop talking about it. Thinking about it. Experimenting with it.

Here's what I love about this advice:
You don't have to figure out your "passion."
You just have to notice what you're already doing.

What do you talk about all the time?
What do you research when you're bored?
What do you spend hours on without getting tired?
That's your fascination.

People build careers around random fascinations.

Someone fascinated by organizing?
Professional organizer. Decluttering consultant.

Someone fascinated by true crime?
Podcast host. Crime writer. Researcher.

Someone fascinated by food?
Restaurant owner. Recipe developer. Food blogger.

Your fascination is valid. Even if it sounds random.
So stop waiting to find your passion.
Just pay attention to what fascinates you.
What do you do when no one's watching?
What do you talk about even when no one asked?
What do you lose track of time doing?

That's it. That's the signal.

Do your way to clarity

10th grade.
I was SO confused.
Medical or non-medical?
Doctor or engineer?
(Yeah, I know. Typical Indian kid thinking these are the only two options in the entire world. 😅)

I talked to my teachers.
My Maths teach said Non-medical.
You will start earning way earlier.

My mom said obviously he's biased as he's a Maths teacher.
Ask a biology teacher, they will say Medical.

And I just got MORE confused.
I finally picked non-medical because I genuinely loved math.

But even after choosing, I kept wondering: "Did I make the right choice? What if I should've taken medical?"

The doubt stuck with me.
For months.

Then one day in 11th grade, I did something random.
I sat in on a biology class.
Just one class. 45 minutes or so.
And you know what happened?
All the confusion... just evaporated.

I sat there listening to the lecture, looking at the diagrams, trying to follow along.
And I realized: I don't want to memorize this. At all.
Math was way more interesting to me.
So, Non-medical felt right.

It wasn't until I actually TRIED the thing I was confused about that I got clarity.
Not from thinking.
Not from asking people.
Not from making pros and cons lists.
From DOING.

You can't think your way to clarity.
You have to DO your way to clarity.

So if you're confused right now about what path to take:
Stop overthinking.
Stop asking more people for their opinions.
Stop waiting for some magical sign.
Just try it.
Do a small project.
Volunteer for a day.
Shadow someone.
Take a weekend course.
Because 1 hour of doing is worth more than 100 hours of thinking.
That biology class?
It took 45 minutes.
And it gave me more clarity than 6 months of overthinking ever could.

So, try it out and stop being decision paralyzed.

Once you choose, stop switching mountains

Let me tell you a story.

A person decides to climb Mount Everest.
They train. They climb some smaller mountains first.
But halfway up, they realize — this is hard.
Way harder than they thought.

Their legs are burning.
The air is thin.
Every step feels impossible.

So they think — you know what?
I'll swim the English Channel instead. 21 miles.
That sounds easier than this.

They've never done endurance swimming.
They can barely swim a lap without getting tired.
But they don't know that yet.
Because they haven't started.

All they know is that climbing felt too hard.
So swimming MUST be easier.

If you're reading this thinking "that's insane" — good.
Because this is exactly what I see people do when they're job searching.

You chose Business Analyst.
You applied to 50 jobs.
The rejections started rolling in.
Multiple "Unfortunately, we've decided to move forward with another candidate." emails.

And then the thought creeps in:
Maybe BA isn't right for me.
Maybe PM is easier. Maybe I'll get hired faster if I switch.

So you start over.
New resume. New role. New applications.
You apply to 30 PM job openings.
But the process repeats - all rejection emails.

And then you think…Maybe Sales is better.

Here's what you don't realize:
Every role is Mount Everest.
You're not switching to something easier.

You're starting the climb all over again.
From the bottom.

While the person who stuck with Business Analyst?
They fixed their resume.
Practiced for interviews.
Reached out to hiring managers.

They were also struggling.
But they kept going.
And are now so close to the finish line!

And you?
Still at the base camp.
Looking at a different mountain.
Thinking THIS one will be easier.

The grass is not greener on the other side.
It's greener where you water it.

Shine a little brighter,
Bani