What do you want to learn?

I had a good conversation with the Apple Online Store’s creative director last week over some fresh hand-made pizza at Apple’s cafeteria (apparently it’s Steve’s favorite :-) I agree, quite tasty yet not heavy). We met awhile back when I was at Oracle and he’s a Valley veteran (Claris, Adobe, Yahoo, etc. whew!) so he’s a great person to chat with about general job/career issues…

After some chewing and chatting, he asked me, “So, what do you want to LEARN in your next job?” Hmm, a good question! Usually it’s “what do you want to DO in your next job”. Honestly haven’t thought of it that way, but it makes sense. Amid the pressure to “get a good job” at a “brand name company”, maxing out on benefits/options/salary and great promotional possibilities, it’s easy to get lost in the overly competitive drive to land the right job with the right job title, etc. — especially these days amid grim economic times. And thus you lose sight of what’s the educative benefit of the job… What do you hope to gain from it, that will keep you growing, learning, thriving, and evolving as a person, and as a professional? What would stimulate you despite the inevitable mundane corporate rigors, pushing you to the next level of accomplishment and inspire others even?

A good question worthy of serious thought.

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