Andrew Heyward has had a career that I envy. The one-time president of CBS News now has two jobs in academia. He’s a Senior Research Professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. He’s also a Visiting Scholar at the MIT Media Lab’s Laboratory for Social Machines and a Senior Advisor at its non-profit spinoff Cortico, where he is working on artificial-intelligence-based tools to strengthen local journalism and civic engagement.

In this episode of the Pre-Made Podcast, Andrew reflects on his extraordinary career and offers advice on how to maximize professional happiness and satisfaction, including:

• As you advance in your career, try to double down on the work you enjoy and seek to minimize if not eliminate the tasks you don’t like.
• Don’t let the opinions of others impact what you do or don’t do.
• Skills evolve as we age, so look for work that will reward these new skills you’re likely to acquire with experience.
• Broaden your network beyond your field of work.
• Consider the value of career breadth versus pure specialization.
• Be prepared to let circumstances unfold and guide your path. You don’t need to have everything figured out in advance of a transition.
• Find a mentor who can help you make better decisions.

Show notes:

• Link to the Arthur Brooks column on how our skills evolve as we age.
• Email Andrew at aheyward@asu.edu.