キャリアに悩むあなたへ　To those who are debating their career paths

English version of this post is available below.

こんにちは、3児ワーママのマミントンです。実は私、この春に勤めている会社で勤続１５年を迎えました。一昔前の日本では入社した会社で定年退職まで働くことが当たり前の世界でしたね。長期間同じ環境で働ける安定感も大切ですが、最近は日本でも転職や起業が流行り、一つの会社で長く働くことばかりが正しいという考えは古いのかもしれませんね。

２０年、３０年、場合によっては４０年以上ある長いキャリア。今の仕事が本当にやりたいことなのか？幼少期に描いていた夢はなんだったっけ？もっと新しい挑戦や刺激が必要かも？など、キャリアについての悩みは誰もがいつかは経験するもの（それも何度も、笑）。大好きなことを仕事にできる人もいれば、生活を支えるために嫌な仕事でも頑張ってこなす人もいるのが現実です。

小さい頃、私の将来の夢は学校の先生になることでした。板書の音が好きで、ただ黒板とチョークに触れたかっただけという、かなり薄っぺらい理由（笑）。結局今は学校の先生とはかけ離れたサラリーマンをしています。もともと数字は好きでした。海外で過ごした高校時代に選択科目で受講した会計の授業がなんとなく面白かったのと、親からも資格は持っておくべきと耳にタコができるほど言われてきたので、公認会計士を目指してビジネス学部がある大学に進学しました。そのまま会計事務所に就職すると思っていたら、就活をしていた時期はリーマンショック前の金融が流行っていた時期。金融業界でバリバリ働く人は会計士よりもカッコいいなぁ、と軽い気持ちで面接を受け金融機関に入社したのが１５年前でした。

最初の数年はとにかく刺激が多くて、欧米な社内文化も自分に合っていて、楽しくガムシャラに働き、金曜日になれば夜通しで遊びました。壁にぶつかったのは入社５年目くらい。仕事のノウハウもなんとなく身につき、若手なりに作業もこなせるように。それと同時に刺激が減り、このままでいいのかな？もっとチャレンジした方がいいのでは？今の自分、あんまりかっこよくないかも。など、色々と悩むようになりました。でも他の何かに情熱を感じるわけではなく、やりたいことがあるわけでもなく、当時の職場が嫌いだったわけでもなく、ただマンネリ化していたのです。今思えば正直に上司に相談しても良かったかなと思いますが、当時は外に目を向けることばかり考えていました。隣の芝生は青いってやつですね。

そんな時に、今の旦那と出会いました。ご飯を食べたり一緒に遊ぶ男友達は何人かいたけれど、「彼氏」と呼べる人はしばらくいなかったのでそれはそれは新鮮で。仕事に不満はあったけれど、新しい彼との生活が楽しくて。遊びに行ったり旅行をしているうちに、転職願望はいつしか消えていました。結局人生に何か物足りなくて、大切な人と出会って穴が埋められた感じだったのでしょうか。

その後間もなく結婚し、子ども達に恵まれ、仕事と家庭の両立が新たなチャレンジとなり、マンネリ化していた生活が一変。良い意味で毎日が子育てと仕事との戦いのような生活になったわけです。もともと同僚は優秀で良い人ばかりだし、社内の制度もしっかり整っているし、良い会社、良い環境であることは分かっていました。あの時この職をそれを手放さなくて良かった、と今では思っています。

何が言いたいかというと、キャリアがマンネリ化してなんとなく新鮮さを感じず、でも他にやりたいことや情熱を持って取り組めるものが見つからないことってあると思うんです。そんな時はせっかく勤めている会社を辞めるのではなく、人生に新鮮な風を吹き込んでくれる何かを探してみてほしいということ。私の場合はそのような時期に偶然旦那に出会ったわけですが、パートナーとの新しい生活に限らず、新しい習い事に取り組んでみる、新しい趣味を見つけてみる、新しい資格を取得してみる、などどんなことでも良いのです。新しい世界に足を踏み入れてみてほしいのです。

念のために言いますが、他にやりたいことや情熱を持てるものがある人は、転職や起業に挑戦し、思いっきりやりたいことに取り組むべきだと思います。そうでないと後悔すると思うから。でも、とくにやりたいことが見つからないけど今の状況に不満がある、という場合は、勢いで会社を辞めるのはもったいなすぎる。なので少しだけ踏ん張って、仕事帰りや休日に何か新しいことを始めてみてください。そこから見える何かによって不満が消えて、物足りなかった生活が満たされるかもしれないから。

Hello, I’m Mamington, a working mom of three. I actually reached a relatively large milestone, my 15 year anniversary with the firm that I work for this past spring. Years ago in Japan, the norm was that one stays with the company they enter fresh out of college for their entire career. But more recently, I see that the society is more open to changing jobs or starting their own businesses in the middle of their careers, and staying in one company forever is no longer the norm.

Our careers can go on for 10, 20, 30, or sometimes even 40+ years. Is this job what I really what to do? What did I want to become when I was a child? Maybe I am ready for a new challenge or stimulation? Questions like these come up during our careers, perhaps many times throughout our careers. Some people have jobs that they love, but reality is that many of us work our jobs because we “have to” in order to support our families and our lives.

When I was a child, I have always wanted to become a school teacher. I loved the sound of teachers writing on chalkboards, and all I wanted to do was write on chalkboards for a living. A childish and shallow motivation it was. And I have an occupation far from a school teacher today, in the financial industry. I always considered myself to be good at math (until I started looking at financial math that downgraded my confidence, but we’ll leave that to another post), and I enjoyed Accounting 101, an elective that I took back in high school which led to my pursuing a profession in accounting and finance. My parents always told me that having some sort of a certification or credential such as a medical license or an accountant certificate would be an asset. I hate blood so couldn’t be a doctor, so I proceeded to study accounting and interned at accounting firms during my college days. I thought that I would have a long career as a Certified Public Accountant in the US, but fate brought me to a career fair where I found the hotter parts of the business world… the investment banking industry, right before the Lehman shock. I followed my gut and took a job with an investment bank, for reasons no other than thinking that the industry “looked and felt cooler” than the accounting industry. How logical…

The first few years were intense in good ways. I liked the western culture of the firm and my colleagues were intelligent and fun. I worked hard and played hard. I hit my first wall at around my 5th year as an associate. I had learned the nuts and bolts of the job, I can get my work done and well, and I kept my managers happy. But I started asking… was this enough? Were my days becoming mundane? I thought that I might be up for another challenge, and that there must be jobs that are cooler and tougher out there. I kept wondering what else could be out there, but I didn’t have anything specific in mind that I could be passionate about. I didn’t disliked my job, and I didn’t have anything else that I wanted to do. I was just bored of doing the same thing for 5 years, and had “the grass is greener on the other side” syndrome, wherever that is.

A few months after I started feeling this mundane-ness, I met someone and started dating him. I had male friends whom I hung out with, but not one that I could call a “boyfriend” in a very long time. After spending so many years of my abroad, I always thought that I would eventually meet the man of my dreams who would sweep me back to the US where I grew up, and I was never looking for a serious relationship in Japan. But he came along… in Japan. It was refreshing to share my life with a significant other, and my mundane days turned into quite an excitement. We went out to many dinners, traveled inside and outside of the country (sounds like a dream considering I have been living in a pandemic for over a year now), and even studying all night for professional exams at Denny’s felt fun with him. My desire for a new career disappeared without me noticing. What I realized was that I wasn’t exactly looking for a new career, but I was just looking for something new. Anything new.

This boyfriend turned into my now husband. We have children, work life balance became our new and ongoing challenge, and whatever mundane days I used to complain about are far gone. Everyday presents a new challenge, whether it is at work, at home, or at work AND home. I remember now that from the start, I always knew that the firm I was working for was a great one with intelligent and kind colleagues, good benefits and a good understanding of diversity. I am glad that I never got rid of that.

What I am trying to say, is that even when your career may seem to be getting boring, if you don’t have something else that you feel passionate about or want to pursue, give your mundane-ish career one more chance. Instead of throwing away all the goodwill that you’ve built so far, hold on just a little bit longer and look for something that gives you a fresh breeze outside of the office. For me, it was meeting the husband, but I think that it could be anything such as trying out a new hobby, pursuing another degree by attending night school, or moving to a new apartment. Step into a new world inside or outside of your comfort zone to give your mind a chance to refresh.

Just to be clear, I am not saying that pursuing a different career path is a wrong move. If you have a passion, that “something else” that you truly want to do, you must go for it! And you must believe that it is never too late, because otherwise you will regret not trying. But if you are considering a career move not because you have something else you want to do, but because you feel bored at your current job, you may regret leaving it. Give it another chance. Do something outside of work to fulfill the life you feel is mundane. You may be taking what you have for granted, and giving it another chance may allow you to realize that all you needed was an additional spice in your life to fulfill your heart.