Don't Be Afraid to Turn a Passion Into a Career

For some, getting the college degree was the easy part. Then the realization hits you that getting a job you really wanted wasn't that easy.

And, moreover, just what would that job be?

I am still trying to break into something other than retail. My degree was the broad Communications B.S., with a minor in history. After I graduated in 2003, my job search ran dry. I've temped at a non-governmental job in Washington and now have three-plus years of retail management, currently with a large coffee chain. I enjoy the social aspect of my job, but the salary and the field in general is not where I want to be.

I find that I'm not sure what I'm qualified for anymore, and have since started taking graduate-level coursework in history, which is a passion of mine. I also am currently interning at a major museum in the Washington area.

How can I shape this broad range of experience and education into a career? I admit I seem very unfocused, but I'm doing my best to get a foot in the door.

Pegine Echevarria, who runs her own human resources firm in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., says, "I actually see her as pretty focused. She likes history and she's interning at a museum.

"I would suggest she explore philanthropy, or fundraising for a museum," Echevarria says. "She understands sales. She likes working with people. She knows customer service. It would be a passion for her.

"What I do hear is that she has a fear of doing something she likes" as a career, specifically working in the broad field of history.

Echevarria says this worker ought to use her contacts at the museum "to let people know that she'd be open to an opportunity with them. Go to events that the museum puts on and get to know these people."

In the end, Echevarria says, companies and organizations "would rather hire people who are passionate about an industry and then the [specific] skills can be taught."

Kenneth Bredemeier has six years of experience writing about the workplace. On the Job, a column addressing real worker questions about office relationships, corporate policies and workplace law, is written exclusively for washingtonpost.com.

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