The Daily Recruiter

Heath Ledger, 28 year Academy Award nominee, who had starring roles in Broke Back Mountain, The Patriot, and others was found dead in his apartment this afternoon by his housekeeper. Newscasters have reported that he died from cardiac arrest and rescue workers were unable to revive him. It is sad and surprising news. Sadder still is that newscasters immediately speculated that he may have died because of a drug problem, despite having no previous history of drug abuse.

What do newscasters know that we don’t know? I think what they know is that people seem to thrive on news that people must have played a part in their undoing, whether it involves a death or a job loss. I can’t say for sure why Heath Ledger died today when he seemed to have a bright future ahead of him. However, it seems to me that the road that led Heath Ledger to his final breath today, may have started because of a successful, albeit unhappy career.

Heath Ledger was undisputably a success, but his earlier statements show how unhappy he was with his career. 

“It was a time when I had not really chosen my career path - it had been chosen for me. I didn’t audition for A Knight’s Take; I was given it.

“And then the studio put my face on a poster and wrote, ‘He Will Rock You,’ and if I didn’t, my career would have been over. That was the first lead I’d had in anything, and there were all these new pressures, which freaked me out.

“I felt like my career was out of my hands. I wasn’t making any decisions; they were being made for me. And so to a certain degree, I had to go out and destroy my career somewhat in order to rebuild it. At the time, I had studios telling me I was crazy. I had agents on my back, publicists, family members, everyone saying, ‘What are you doing? You should be this. You should be that. You should follow the dollar. Follow the gloss.’

“My life is together, both professionally and socially. But it’s been a big learning process, and there is no YODA - there’s no one who points you in the right direction. You’ve got to figure that out by yourself.” - Quote excerpts from contactmusic.com

Heath Ledger held a belief that keeps millions of people from changing careers. He believed that “other people” were responsible for the direction that his career took. He adopted a belief system filled with excuses, excuses that start with “because” and continue with “I can’t”. The truth, of course, is that he could have changed his career at any time, but he like so many others felt it was just easier to go with the flow. It was easier to let others decide what direction his career should go in. It was easier….for a while.

What I learned from Heath Ledger today, it’s that if you’re not happy with your job, do something about it. You can change careers. You might not make as much money as you’re making now or you’ve made in the past. You might not  live in the same house or live in the same area or drive the same car. But, “what if” you find a job that pays you more than you’ve ever earned? What if you end up living in a better house because you chose a different career path? What if you end up driving a better car or live in a better area because you took control of your career and your own happiness? What if? 

Life is short, don’t make it shorter by staying in a job that you dread doing everyday.  If your job isn’t making your life happier, why are you doing it? Maybe it’s time to rethink your career strategy.