#55 Vet Med Alignment Part 1: Job vs. Career

The Joyful DVM Podcast: Empowering Veterinary Professionals

Veterinarians, Veterinary Technicians, and all members of the veterinary healthcare team often grapple with the question "Am I cut out for a career in Vet Med" at some point in their careers.
The complex experience of being a veterinary professional, along with the negative emotional impact that often accompanies it, has many concluding they are not personally equipped for what this job requires.
However, the question does not have a binary, all-or-nothing, answer.
The job and the career are different things.
The job is the way in which a veterinary professional is utilizing their skills and knowledge in exchange for money at a given point in time.
There are many different veterinary-related jobs.
When a veterinary professional finds themselves in a bad-fit job, it doesn't mean they have also picked a bad-fit career.
Unfortunately, because bad-fit jobs tend to be a pretty common occurrence in the veterinary profession, a growing number of veterinary professionals are concluding they have chosen the wrong careers.
The impact of believing you've made a wrong career choice should not be disregarded.
Choosing a career is a major life decision.
Much thought, time, money, and effort goes into pursuing a veterinary career.
Therefore, when a veterinary professional concludes they made the wrong career choice, they often experience a wave of self-judgment, guilt, and shame.
This is compounded with beliefs about time lost, being trapped by debt, and a foundation-shaking mistrust of one's ability to make the right choices for themselves.
Together, this can lead to myriad secondary challenges: anxiety, depression, fear of the future, hopelessness...
... all of which block the ability to see the Absolute Truths of the situation.
Understanding the difference between Career Fit and Job Fit is the best place to start.
To determine your Vet Med Career Alignment Score, visit https://joyfuldvm.com/quiz