When I was in ninth grade, I auditioned for my high school’s annual musical for the first time. In order to audition, it was required for people interested in lead roles to prepare two musical pieces and for others interested in supporting roles or the chorus to prepare one musical piece. Being a freshman, I recognized my position as a peon, set my eyes for the chorus, and worked hard to prepare my musical piece.

On the day of my audition, I arrived, nervous and excited. I confidently walked onto the stage and sang my heart out for the directors. At the end of the song, I anxiously awaited the response.

“Great job. But tell me, why did you only prepare one piece?” said my choral director.

Preparing two pieces had never crossed my mind. I just assumed that ninth graders were in the chorus and upperclassmen were the leads. I wouldn’t have minded the attention; I was such a ham back then. Actually, I ended up snagging the part as the camel (we did “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) and I had a helluva good time. But I’ll admit I certainly didn’t go into that audition with high expectations for myself.

My father calls me a “worrier.” Anytime he gives me advice about something, he makes it a point to say, “You should [fill in the blank] because you’re a worrier.” I suppose he’s right. I hate being out of control, I hate taking risks, and therefore I always play it safe. In my mind, there was no need to prepare two musical pieces because preparing two musical pieces as a freshman would not be a safe thing to do.

Today I started thinking about how my tendency to play it safe is affecting my career. Lately I’ve been salivating over the thought of my dream job, but I’m having a difficult time imagining myself going for it. The thought of pursuing something outside of my comfortable life is frightening to me. But there are plenty of other people going after the life they want, so why shouldn’t I? For example, a friend of mine just recently accepted the position of assistant editor for one of the world’s largest magazine publishers. Did I mention that she’s twenty-two years old? Twenty EFFING two! When she told me about her courageous pursuit of this position, pride welled up inside my heart. Then I started to wonder if I have the same guts.

There’s something to be said of strategically planning the steps you take within your career path, but not each step will be just a step. In my career path, some steps will require me to take leaps. My cautiousness may not jive well with leaps, but if I’m ever going to convince someone to pay me to do what I love to do, I will have to find a way to deal. Leaps may not be safe, but they’re exciting. And I’d much rather have an exciting career than a safe one. 

Related Posts, for Your Reading Enjoyment: