Prologue

Way back in college, I've been an online contractor where I worked as a home-based call center representative, a marketing assistant and a bookkeeper for quite a few clients. Basically, all of them were remote and our means of communication was Skype.

There was one reason why I contracted with clients abroad: I NEEDED MONEY.

I wanted to buy new clothes. New phones. To be updated with the newest gadgets.

Yes, I earned a lot – at least for a second year college student. But the bad side was, I had to stay up until 3AM. I was required to work during US Hours. Plus, I always encountered rude callers - too rude for me to handle. In short, I always looked forward to the end of my shift, and simply charge my clients of my hourly rate.

I was not happy but hey! I needed money. Like, MORE  AND MORE MONEY.

Is Money Always the Answer?

Typically, most are motivated by huge salaries when choosing a job. I mean, even I have dreams of having a fat-paycheck-paying job sometime in the future. But  6 months into the real world and I am beginning to realize that taking money as the sole consideration for choosing a career is too naive.

One can have a huge pay, but the workload that he gets is inhumane. Oppositely, there were high paying jobs but the tasks are pretty much repetitive where growth is limited.

Going back to my story, I primarily sought online sidelines because I was obsessed to having money. I was obsessed in satisfying my luxuries, be in places where I've never been. But if there is one realization in my life, that would be: DON'T SOLELY BASE YOUR DECISION TO MONEY.

So What Shall be the Basis?

There are jobs that will expose you to different tasks and experiences relevant to your field. You just have to carefully pick which one will give you the learning that you need to grow as an expert.

The catch is, mostly, these jobs are those where you barely hear the chinks of coins every payday, where you are always in a negative net position 'cos rent, utilities and food exceed your income. And unfortunately, these jobs give you more stress that you often feel your under-compensated.

Sometimes you wonder, would it be the learning or the earning?

Why is it Difficult to Weigh the Two?

As I mentioned before, most people would go to the most practicable decision and go for earning.

But for some who want to be an expert in their field and at the same, bread winners of their families, this is truly a critical decision to make. It's a decision between passion and monetary necessity.

It always boils down to knowing what you really want to become and your career path. Have a long-term rather than short-term decision. Look for a job that will feed you over the next ten years rather than securing you only on a monthly basis.

Look for a job that is sustainable and shall help you to achieve mastery. Because if your ultimate goal is to change your economic status in life, you gotta prove that you are worth paying for. You gotta prove that every penny given to you results to growth of a company. An employer won't pay huge amounts for an average service. They would rather consult the experts.

3 Simple Rules

Knowing your career path is essential and you have to be SPECIFIC. You want to earn six figures but how? Go for a job that is relevant to your goals and will help you achieve mastery. Get a job where you will learn both technical and soft skills. It may not be easy. Deadly for some but rest assured that all your hard work shall pay off.

Take it from me: Hard work does pay off all the time. Time will come and you shall be reaping the fruits of your labor.

In the same way, think long term. You may have a quite decent pay as a fresh graduate but the question would have to be: is it scalable? As you enter the adulthood, marriage, building your own family, and eventually sending your children to schools, how certain are you that your job could provide you in the next coming years?

Will you advance further in that high-paying job? What's next for you?

It might be high today and be virtually stagnant in the future.

Find a job where you will never utter "Thank God it's Friday." Find a job where you won't ever look forward the end of your shift. Go for your passion. You may encounter a bad boss, tons of  unrealistic deadlines, but as long as you have the passion in what you do, and you believe that this is for your professional growth, there shall always be a reason to stay.

Find a job where you pour your 100% best. Always remember that having a job is not just about earning. It's about making impact and value to people and businesses.

Make a difference in this corporate world: always aim to sincerely give value. And you'll be surprised how they'll give it back to you. Sometimes, it's doubled.

Conclusion

All of us, for sure, want to have a brighter future and to provide for our family. Some go for a high paying jobs at first but they used to hate it because it's either routinary or stressful. Some go for the most notorious jobs for the sake of learning despite being underpaid, but deep in their hearts, they don't love what they are doing.

While you are young, acquire mastery and expertise in your field, because it'll be harder once you become older. It'll be harder if you start building your own family. And it'll be harder because our mental and physical state is weaker compared to our younger years.

LEARNING should come first then gradually, you remove the "L" and it becomes EARNING.