If you have enough doubt in your mind that it even seems like a faintly good idea to ask for advice before setting out on this path… in my opinion, that constitutes strong evidence that it’s the wrong path for you, and the best time to cancel is before you start.
Yes, I have major doubts. But with thousands of lives on the line, obviously I want to be really sure. Relying only on my own ideas has not always worked well, and I’m excited to have found a community of people who can think about this stuff beyond “Wow, that’s really intense, I could never do that.”
It seems to me that you have boxed yourself into thinking along the common career paths only.
It happens occasionally that I hear a person asking something along the lines of “I want to help humanity, and, in my estimation, is the one with the most potential to do so, how do I best learn it to start realizing my dream?” The occupation in question I hear about is usually physics, nanotech or something along those lines. My first question usually is “are you any good at it?”. The answer, more often than not, is “I don’t really like physics that much, but I’m willing to make a sacrifice to achieve my ultimate goal, so I will work hard”.
At this point I have little choice but to rain on one’s parade. If you are not naturally good at something, you can still do well enough to get maybe into top 10% (I’m being generous here) in the field through hard work and dedication only, while hating your life along the way. If you find what you are best at (better than anyone you know personally is a good starting measure), and put all this hard work in, you are much more likely to be in the top 1% or better, while having fun along the way.
My point is that being one of the best in any field gives you more leverage than being one of many in a specific field. Do you have an area where you naturally blow everyone else out of the water without even trying? If nothing comes to mind, maybe you need to look harder and think out of the proverbial box. For example, maybe you can be the best mother in the world and contribute to humanity through raising the best children possible. Or maybe you have a writing talent that you don’t give the time of day because it is not likely to provide the income you want. Maybe you are an excellent sharpshooter, but are repulsed by the idea of aiming your gun at people and so discard the possibility of it being used for good, not evil. Maybe public speaking is what you are best at.
Here is one example: I know a person in a country with huge corruption issues who accidentally became a realtor and a really good one. Just by dealing honestly, against rather grim odds, she probably improved (and likely saved) more lives than she would have in any other career. And guess what, she now has the disposable income to donate to causes she likes.
So, what are you really really really good at? Because nothing else is worth considering.
Well, I know next to nothing about homemaking, but a quick search shows that it transfers well to, say, organizational aspects of international relief and development agencies and NGOs. But I suspect you have already considered and rejected that option.
Honestly?
If you have enough doubt in your mind that it even seems like a faintly good idea to ask for advice before setting out on this path… in my opinion, that constitutes strong evidence that it’s the wrong path for you, and the best time to cancel is before you start.
Yes, I have major doubts. But with thousands of lives on the line, obviously I want to be really sure. Relying only on my own ideas has not always worked well, and I’m excited to have found a community of people who can think about this stuff beyond “Wow, that’s really intense, I could never do that.”
It seems to me that you have boxed yourself into thinking along the common career paths only.
It happens occasionally that I hear a person asking something along the lines of “I want to help humanity, and, in my estimation, is the one with the most potential to do so, how do I best learn it to start realizing my dream?” The occupation in question I hear about is usually physics, nanotech or something along those lines. My first question usually is “are you any good at it?”. The answer, more often than not, is “I don’t really like physics that much, but I’m willing to make a sacrifice to achieve my ultimate goal, so I will work hard”.
At this point I have little choice but to rain on one’s parade. If you are not naturally good at something, you can still do well enough to get maybe into top 10% (I’m being generous here) in the field through hard work and dedication only, while hating your life along the way. If you find what you are best at (better than anyone you know personally is a good starting measure), and put all this hard work in, you are much more likely to be in the top 1% or better, while having fun along the way.
My point is that being one of the best in any field gives you more leverage than being one of many in a specific field. Do you have an area where you naturally blow everyone else out of the water without even trying? If nothing comes to mind, maybe you need to look harder and think out of the proverbial box. For example, maybe you can be the best mother in the world and contribute to humanity through raising the best children possible. Or maybe you have a writing talent that you don’t give the time of day because it is not likely to provide the income you want. Maybe you are an excellent sharpshooter, but are repulsed by the idea of aiming your gun at people and so discard the possibility of it being used for good, not evil. Maybe public speaking is what you are best at.
Here is one example: I know a person in a country with huge corruption issues who accidentally became a realtor and a really good one. Just by dealing honestly, against rather grim odds, she probably improved (and likely saved) more lives than she would have in any other career. And guess what, she now has the disposable income to donate to causes she likes.
So, what are you really really really good at? Because nothing else is worth considering.
I’m really good at homemaking. I don’t think anyone believes that me being really good at that is worth 2,500 lives.
Well, I know next to nothing about homemaking, but a quick search shows that it transfers well to, say, organizational aspects of international relief and development agencies and NGOs. But I suspect you have already considered and rejected that option.