The definition of the word ‘career’ today typically relates to the main stream of remunerative work we do through the course of our lives. If you think about the concept of career in terms of the history of mankind, its a strange little thing that has only been around for a couple of hundred years. It is an aberration. It only arrived with the organization of large corporations.

Courtesy of the continuous developments and advances in the field of telecommunications and the progressive decentralization of the workforce, it’s not easy to discern just how much longer the notion of ‘careers’ will continue. To be frank, all that a ‘career’ really describes is the idea of somebody following along in a chain of opportunities and skills defined and chosen by another person. It is a way for allowing others to tell us how we fit in to the grand scheme of things and what our worth really is.

It has always seemed revealing to me that the word itself (career) contains the word ‘care’ within it. As if to imply that the companies and corporations for which we perform our career have taken for themselves the role of caring for us during the course of our professional adult lives. It is as if they become babysitters, keeping us from learning how to make decisions wisely or learning how to value ourselves on our own. It’s all based on a certain basic unwillingness on their behalf to let people become the managers of their own development, to determine their own worth. Which is why we supposedly have ‘careers’, to help us find the way forward in life, something which only holds much promise if and when we are deemed to be worthwhile and the employer can afford to see us promoted (which implies they have someone to fill our spot).

No wonder so many people are dissatisfied with their jobs. Its all work, its all someone else’s decisions, its all for someone else’s goals, and its all building someone else’s life. Yet so many people talk about career as if its the most important thing in their life.

I can remember back to being a kid: when my parents would go out at night, having to be babysat was surely not my favorite moment of the week; what I really enjoyed was being able to go and play with my friends and brothers. What part of that changes as adults? When is it that we decide to let someone else’s criteria determine our own success and value? Why do we abdicate the driver’s seat in someone else’s favor? What is it that convinces us of the importance of careers so badly?

‘Making a living’, now that’s more talking my language. I’m not sure if you noticed, but the term is simply about life. And that’s what careerists often forget I think. We are on this earth to live. Not to be babysat. We are here to learn our own lessons, in our own time. We are here to experience, grow and love. We are here to find and define our own value, not have someone do it for us. That is what making a living is about, its making life.

These ideas capture what I love so much about internet marketing. Fine, it’s necessary for you to acquire new skills in order to write competitive and performing websites, fully optimized for search engines, but all that is just technical mumbo-jumbo which most anyone can learn.

The main thing I love about making a living on the internet though is that the only type of business that works on the internet, are businesses about things you are passionate about. The reason is simple. Every topic in the world carries to some degree, its own language. It is only when you are passionate about a topic that you will understand this language. It is only when you know this language that you will be able to reach the people who share your passion and sell them the real value you have to offer. This, for better or worse, is the internet way.

Which is what makes this such a beautiful industry: to find success, you first have to find your passion. And in that sense I do not consider myself to have a career, but rather to be someone that merely makes a living. Even including this article, everything I work on I am passionate about. I never wake up dreading life anymore, but rather jump up out of bed eager to tackle a new day. No more fretting about missed opportunities or promotions I didn’t get, etc. etc. I measure my own value according to the web creations I make, the contribution they make to my back account, the lifestyle I get to enjoy and the extra time I have on my hands.

Given such a beautiful scenario, I could never bring myself to do anything else.

As a recent Dad, Damian Papworth recognizes the consistent battle for time, which rages between his office and his home. He always endeavors to find a way to enhance family life. Recently he researched baby high chairs, doing some specific analysis of portable high chairs.

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