Making a success of 'wrong' profession

Making a success of 'wrong' profession

JAKARTA (JP): A university student's entry in the letter's
column of Kompas daily earlier this month is a lament about
thwarted career ambitions.

Intent on going in to advertising, she joined a special course
at a private university. After two years there, she was
disappointed to find the program had been discontinued.

She deserves sympathy, of course, as she just wanted to
fulfill her ambitions. But maybe she can take solace from the
example of Nenny Soemawinata, a computer science graduate turned
advertising expert and now general manager at private television
station ANteve.

Or Hermawan Kertajaya, an electrical engineer by training who
is better known as a marketing expert and the most expensive
seminar speaker. They are part of a long list of people who have
successfully detoured from their set career plans.

Perhaps it is incorrect to say they succeeded despite
"wrongly" choosing their profession. People are free to choose
any job as long as they enjoy doing it. The fact the formal
educational background is unrelated should be unimportant. In
short, a job is open to all interested parties as long as it does
not require a particular expertise.

Sartono Mukadis, a human resources expert from PersoData, a
human resources development institute, uses the graph of a
mathematical group to describe the relationship between a
person's interest and the type of job chosen. The first group
consists of pictures of instruments, the second contains data and
the third people.

It is likely that people who like instruments, for example,
will take up jobs involving devices, such as those in electrical
or computer engineering. People who like data may feel at home in
jobs involving numbers such as accounting and statistics. Like
people? Chances are you will select jobs involving human
interaction such as management, public relations and marketing.

Sartono said boundaries of the three groups were not exclusive
but sometimes form a meeting point. This means there are always
people who can do jobs in the three areas.

Darwis Triadi is a case in point. He has a diploma from an
aviation school and used to work as a pilot for chartered planes.
Today, however, he is one of the country's best-known
photographers.

These jobs involve the ability to control instruments but also
touch on human relations as, Darwis said, "I mix a lot with
models".

Nenny Soemawinata enrolled in a computer programming
department although, in contrast to the stereotype of the egg-
headed nerd, she described herself as an extrovert.

She took up computer programming because she knew that the
computer would occupy an important position in the business
world. But she also realized that as an extrovert, she could not
stay long in a computer company. After trying her hand at several
jobs, she has finally landed work as an advertising executive.

Nenny denies her choice of profession was merely by chance.
She believes educational background should not keep someone
locked in a professional career path.

"My educational background is still useful, especially in
systematic thinking," she said.

According to Mukadis, education is important as a foundation
from which other kinds of expertise can be developed to support a
career or profession. "Schooling must serve as a foundation. This
is the principle," he stressed.

He said those successful in jobs other than their formal
background were probably people willing to work hard and continue
learning.

If someone complains that he or she is not suitable for a job
because of a different educational background, Mukadis said he
will often quip in reply: "Maybe you are not fit for any jobs".

Hard work and openness to learning are what made Hermawan
Kertajaya, Nenny Soemawinata and other national and international
figures -- economist George Soros and Jodie Foster to name just
two -- successful in their careers despite unrelated educational
backgrounds.

Not to be forgotten is will. Hard work and continuous
learning will mean nothing without determination. "If we have to
work late into the night but we do not love our work, how could
we stand it?" Nenny said.

As she can testify, the passport to career success does not
only lie in the proper education background. Many people like the
sticker "Just because you're certified does not mean you're
qualified". The despondent university student can take heart that
her education is only a stepping stone in the unpredictable and
often exciting climb up the corporate ladder.

The above is an excerpt from the forthcoming Tiara. The
complete article with sidebars will appear in the lifestyle
biweekly when it goes on sale Wednesday. It is printed here
courtesy of Tiara.