Work is something that most of us have to do if we want to survive. If you're capable of working, you might have a job or you might focus on building more of a career. Either way, you spend a lot of your time working, so it pays to choose something that you can be satisfied with. Even if your work isn't the most important thing in your life, it should be something that you enjoy doing. Many people achieve this by looking for something fulfilling, especially if they feel they can do some good during their career. If you want to make a difference, try these tips to get started.

Tap Into Research

If you want to do some good with your career but you're not sure where to begin, you should take a look at some of the important research done on the topic. At 80,000 Hours you can learn from ten years of research into how best to use your time at work (80,000 hours) to make an impact and contribute to change. You can start by looking at some key ideas and learning about some high-impact careers. There's also a job board to explore or you can get one-to-one advice.

Work in the Charity or Nonprofit Sector

Choosing to work in the charity or nonprofit sector could mean many things. You can choose a certain career or role that you're interested in and elect to do that work for charities and nonprofit organizations. By working for these organizations, you will build specialist knowledge that will help you to seek out other opportunities in the same sector. So, whether you're an accountant, work in marketing, or your career is in customer service, you can find jobs within the charity sector that could work out for you.

Find a Cause You're Passionate About

Some people decide to dedicate their work to helping with a specific cause. If you're knowledgeable about public health, you could look for career opportunities that allow you to contribute to polio eradication and dealing with other endemic diseases. If you're an animal lover, maybe you'll decide to dedicate your life to conservation or to animal rescue. Finding a cause that you're passionate about can help you to shape your career and make decisions on where to go next. It can help you to develop valuable expertise too.

Play a Role in Your Community

Many people will think on a national or even global scale when considering how their career might allow them to do some good. However, you don't have to think on such a large scale if you want to make a difference. You can think about how playing a role within your local community could also inspire change. That could mean becoming a teacher or a youth worker, being a social worker, working for a local charity, or providing medical services or social care to people in your community.

If you want to do some good with your career, there are multiple ways to look for opportunities to make a change.