Family is very important to me….right now it is just me and my husband, but someday soon we will have our first child!
I have been going back and fourth with different career options, and am still so confused!
I want to make good money, but still be able to see my husband and kid every once in a while!!
So, I have considered being a pediatrician, but medical school is very demanding….or Ive even tossed around the idea of going into real esate sales and eventually owning my own company as a broker!
So….which one do you think I should consider?
GLENN
Comments
Wow, those are two very different options! You’re right, of course, in that medical school is very demanding. So are the patients when you begin your practice. 
If the field of medicine interests you, and you have an aptitude for that sort of thing, you might consider becoming a nurse instead, perhaps even a nurse practioner. Many hospitals have flexible schedules for nurses, including longer shifts, but fewer workdays. Also, depending on your area, some hospitals will pay off any student loans as a signing bonus.
Real estate is also a demanding field. You have to be available to meet the clients’ schedules. This often means weekend work. Lots and lots of weekends, which may not work well with your stated goal of spending time with your family. That’s not to say you can’t do both and be very successful at it–hundreds of thousands of women have done so!–but there is a price to be paid.
So, given your question, I like door #3–nursing school. Good luck with whatever you choose!
The question is, will you be happy in either one of those occupations? The money part is great, but as you get older, you’ll find that money is less important and liking/loving your job becomes very important. What’s the use of making $150,000 a year if you **** what you do? If you do something you love, the money will follow. So, how can you know what’s a career you’d love?
I would suggest you get the book “Do What You Are” by Paul and Barbara Tieger. The entire premise of the book is to find a career that fits your personality traits. Remember in high school, the test you’d take that would tell you the career field you should be in based on your answers? This is similar to that, but the problem with those high school tests is that they base their answers on your goals, values and interests. The problem with that is those three things will change over time. Compare your goals, values and interests now to what they were when you were in high school. Mine have changed and I’m sure yours have also.
Instead base your career on your personality because your personality is always your personality. Some aspects may become more prevalent during different phases of your life, but it’s always you. There is a simple test in the book that will help you pin point your personality type. Then you can read all about your personality type and see how you function. From there the book gives suggestions on different careers that would fit your personality. Mind you, the lists are not exhaustive at all and they stress that any personality type can be happy in any field, you just have to find the right niche in that field.
For example, I’m an ESTP - Extrovert, Sensing, Thinking, Perceiving. My personality is one of the most risk taking types out there (not with my life, but with financial risks). They said that I would never be happy in a routine desk job and that I needed an element of risk, to do new things in order to find true joy in my career. They are right. I get bored very quickly with routine and I enjoy trading in the high risk markets like derivatives and foreign exchange. While most people fall apart at losing money in financial investments, to me, it’s just money - that’s part of the game.
So, before you pick pediatrics or real estate, first find out what your personality traits are and from the define which career path with make you the most happy. The test in the book is a simplified version, but you can get a more detailed test by looking up the Briggs-Meyers personality profiling tests, etc., which is what their book is based upon.
To do either one of those jobs will require a significant investment in time from you. Owning your own business may sound glamorous, but the fact is it takes a huge amount of time from the owner. It’s not just a 8:30 a.m.- 5 p.m., Monday to Friday job (especially in real estate!). Maybe after you’ve done all the work, someday your business will make enough money that you can afford to hire a manager to take your place, but that usually doesn’t happen right away unless you have a fat wallet to carry you through the lean years. Being a doctor also requires a lot of time.
But the bottom line is neither profession is one that people go in to and don’t have families. If you want a family, but you also want a professional career, you have to come to the realization that some days the career will demand more and some days you’ll give more to the family. Regardless which profession you choose, you set your own priorities and live by them.
neither because you will never have time for your family. but then again, with real estate sales you can make your own hours. you can even choose to work part time in real estate sales.
