What Did I Talk About In My Career Development Story For PhD Career Stories?

Recently, the PhD Career Stories series invited me to record an episode. If you are interested, you can listen to my story here.

The point of this episode was to review my whole personal development up to this point. And, to explain step by step how I found myself in the place I am in right now, both career-wise and mentally. This is always an interesting question as most people—including me—are rather poor at assessing the real causes of events that happen to them.

I was thinking for a long time about what I should actually focus on in this podcast. In the end, I took a little trip back in time.

And I told quite a long and hopefully unbiased story about everything that happened ever since I was a primary school student. In the process of recording that episode, I also realized a few important things about how the past influences the present in personal development. I would like to share them here.

1. The Signs.

No one has a Guardian Angel to tell in which direction you should develop. However, some people seem to have stronger intuition than others when it comes to navigating the job market.

This greatly helps them in personal development. Maybe they are just more sensitive to the little signs they see on the way! 

If you look into the past with an open mind, you will notice something. The signs of what you should be really doing in your life were actually present. They were there all the way, starting in early childhood. 

These signs manifested in every little decision you were taking. They showed up in every little thingie that you either liked or disliked, in everything that you either regretted or were proud of.

But for the most part, you were not paying attention to them. And then, many years later, all of a sudden you get enlightened—and sometimes, this means that you need to change your path completely. 

At some point, I started treating this problem in a scientific way. And I basically dug into my own past looking for evidence on behalf of each possible scenario. Then it turned out that I should probably be an entrepreneur.

2. Why Does Influence Come From Pain And Pressure?

When I think about people who had some influence on my professional and personal development so far, I come to a realization. Most of these people were actually treating me badly. Back then I was cursing these people. 

But now, in retrospect, I see that in the long run, I profited from hardship in one way or another. People who were nice to me had an influence on my sense of well-being. But, they never really had a long-lasting influence on my way of thinking about the world.

So, in the long run, some hardship is beneficial, or even necessary, to get somewhere in your personal development.

According to Tedeschi & Calhoun (1996), published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress, many people report genuine positive psychological change. This occurs in the aftermath of hardship and adversity. This includes greater personal strength, new possibilities, and a deeper appreciation of life.

3. All Is Connected.

I know that some people prefer to see a clear distinction between professional and private life. But I still feel that in the end, everything connects. And one area of your life will affect all the other areas.

Sometimes, you feel that nothing works in your life. You do not feel energetic or healthy, you get the impression that the wrong people surround you.

They do not inspire you at all, and they pull you down. You feel frustrated at work, etc. 

And then, all of a sudden, you discover that you are on the wrong career track. You find out what to do with your life next. And then all the other little problems disappear one by one—they just take each other down like a domino.

You just cannot be truly happy and healthy. And have the right people around, if you develop your career in the wrong direction.

4. Why Is The Stop-Loss The Key?

One year of going in the right direction will give you more progress than 15 years of going in the wrong direction. 

This sounds obvious, but I experienced my very skin how huge this difference really is.

This is also why sometimes, it is good to listen to your gut and to change your career track into something completely different. At first, you are scared as it feels like you just wasted the last 15 years.

According to Arkes and Blumer (1985), people persist in failing endeavors mainly to avoid appearing wasteful. But in fact, you are just winning the rest of your life.

5. Calmness and Clarity.

If you master personal development and find the right career track, you will find some inner peace. This holds no matter how hard-working or overwhelmed you might be on the outside.

There is a great difference between being busy and being stressed—stress only occurs when something is wrong with your decision-making, or with your environment. According to Karasek (1979), published in Administrative Science Quarterly, it is specifically the combination of high demands and low decision latitude — not workload alone. This combination produces psychological strain, which is why being busy and being stressed are not the same thing. 

So, when you embark on the right track, you’ll get inner confidence that you will be all fine. And that you don’t need to worry about the future.

If you feel like that right now, this feeling might actually be a good indicator that you found yourself in the right place. According to Ryan and Deci (2000), activities that satisfy autonomy, competence, and relatedness foster lasting well-being.