I left Big Law at 29 to become a rabbi, then changed careers again at 40. Here's what I learned about finding the perfect job.

JBS Justin Pines, the CEO of the Jewish Broadcasting Service, became a corporate attorney after college. At 29, he left Big Law to become a rabbi, before pivoting again at 40 into the media. This is what his career pivots taught him about finding a job that's the perfect fit. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Justin Pines, 42, the CEO of the Jewish Broadcasting Service, who lives in New Jersey. His education and former and current employment have been verified by Business Insider. This piece has been edited for length and clarity. I always wanted my job to involve sharing Jewish ideas with a large audience, but I also felt I needed a safety net . So, I took the "safe" career path of becoming a corporate attorney . After about three years as an attorney, I left law to train as a rabbi. It led to me becoming the director of character development at a Jewish middle school, which I did for three years between 2016 and 2019. I loved it, but I pivoted again at 40 when I realized how hard it was to support my family that way. Now, I'm the CEO of the Jewish Broadcasting Service, a role that enables me to do what I'd always hoped. With all of these changes, I learned about how to find a job that's the perfect fit. I wanted to make movies, but I went into corporate law When I was 13, around the time of my Bar Mitzvah, I became very taken with Judaism. I started observing Shabbat and became interested in learning more about the religion. The more involved I became, the happier I felt. To try to bring Judaism to the world, ideally through making movies, I studied communications for my undergraduate degree. Toward the end of my degree, which I started in 2001, making it in Hollywood felt overwhelming and unrealistic. So, I went to Harvard Law School , deferring for a year to study at a Jewish educational institution in Israel. People assured me law school would set me up for any job I wanted. I began the program in 2006 and remember thinking a 30-year-old legal case in one of my first criminal law classes felt a little empty in comparison to the 2,000-year-old texts I had been reading, which felt divine and inspired. Overall, though, studying for my JD law degree was great. It made my brain feel super sharp, I made some amazing friends, and it set me up well for my legal career. I struggled with the long-term prospects of working in law During the summer of 2008, the year before I graduated from Harvard, I interned at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. The company was full of excellent, smart, and kind people, so I accepted a full-time position that would start after I graduated. From 2009, I spent two years on rotation across different corporate departments at the firm. I had the opportunity to...

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