Is Your Job Choice Influenced by Your Role In School?

I came across this interesting article by Reuters on the Yahoo News site. Here's an excerpt:

"Thirty-nine percent of 6,000 full-time workers questioned in a survey said their experiences in high school had an impact on their career.

Geeks gravitated toward engineering and retail jobs. Athletes tended to work in the transportation industry, while former cheerleaders, who were more likely to reach vice president level, were drawn to careers in travel and insurance.
Cheerleaders also had the second highest level of job satisfaction, after teacher's pets, at 76 percent.

"These are enthusiastic individuals, they're strong motivators. They know how to get others excited about projects. You can see how that enthusiasm and motivation can translate into a role where you're in charge of managing a large department or whatever it may be," said Jennifer Grasx, of CareerBuilder.com which conducted the survey.

Former members of student government earned the most money and tended to work as directors or managers. Twelve percent reported making $100,000 or more, and nearly half had a salary of $50,000 or more. But they were also the most dissatisfied with their career progress."

This study, albeit a relatively small one, does bring to light the role that childhood choices and exposures possibly play later in one's professional life (the role of the same in one's personal life is ofcourse well studied and documented). I think it is thus paramount that a child be allowed to discover for him/herself where his/her natural interest and competence lies, so that there is a greater possibility of a successful and more importantly, a greatly satisfying professional life later.

The article:

Teacher's pet or jock? School roles influence job choice

Happy Reading!