6 Benefits of Having a Career That Helps Others

Finding a meaningful career that you enjoy can be a challenge, but according to a recent study, careers that focus on helping people offer the most reward in terms of how an individual feels about the work they do. So what are the benefits of a career that helps others? Let’s read on:

1. You can help change someone’s life

Whether you’re working with disadvantaged children or adults struggling with addiction, you have the influence to change the course of someone’s life for the better. In this way, you are a mentor and someone to be looked up to. Imagine giving someone the opportunity to live a better life? Many people who have gone through difficult situations credit those around them for supporting them and giving them the strength they needed to get through it. It is more than just a job, it’s something that can stay with you forever.

2. It’s easier to derive meaning from your work

Like most jobs, there are many challenges that come with working with other people especially those who are going through tough times. With any job, as you move up the corporate ladder it’s easy to lose your purpose along the way. At some point, work can become meaningless especially if you are not deriving any pleasure or satisfaction from it and this is a common problem for many workers today. When your job relies on helping other people through difficult situations, there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. At the end of each day, you can go home knowing that you have done something positive in the world.

3. You have a direct impact on something

Many roles you might come across are what some people call “a cog in the machine”, which means they are just one single component in a large system working towards a goal. It is not necessarily a bad thing, and the way we have established business it’s a very efficient way of working. However, if you don’t want to be “just another cog in the machine”, and you want to see the direct impact of your work then a career helping people is the best way to do it. For example, Rehabilitation Counsellors organise living arrangements for people with disabilities, and nurses help patients stay positive during complex, sometimes life-altering surgeries—these are roles that have a direct impact on the people they come across.

4. It’s not about the money

Research has shown that more money does not equal more happiness or satisfaction at work. Why? Because after a certain point, the money becomes secondary to other desires; such as more free time to spend with family and loved ones. That is why many people burn out when they chase promotion after promotion. If you’re working purely for money, you’ll find work much more difficult to get through. If you can find a job you love in spite of the pay, you’ll enjoy your work and you won’t fall into the trap of climbing the career ladder for the sake of more money.

5. You have more friends

Social connections are the lifeblood of society, and these connections can help us develop friendships in the long term. Research suggests that those who work closely with people tend to have more friends and are more tolerant overall compared with those who do not work closely with people. Throughout your career helping other people, you will form more close bonds than most people ever will in their entire lifetime. And that’s certainly an awesome benefit!

6. It allows you to improve your social skills

With technology becoming more and more advanced, many of us might find that we don’t always take the time to have face-to-face conversations. This lack of connection can be detrimental to our social skills and affect our empathy for other people. Relating to others is an important social skill, and it is also incredibly rewarding. By helping other people and being there for them you’ll come to understand the complex ways other human beings see the world.