If you knew then what you know now, how would you go about finding fulfilling work and ensuring success in your career?

Choosing the right career path was no trivial matter for Harvard Business School's Class of 1963. They were members of one of the last generations that considered a lifelong career with a company as nothing out of the ordinary.

That’s a stark contrast to the results of a 35-year study conducted by Chuck Pierret, an economist with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. His report, released in 2010, found that the average American entering the workforce in 1979 held nearly 11 different jobs by the time she was 42 years old.

So the stakes were much higher when those Harvard grads hit the bricks. They needed to find a job they could live with for a very long time. And a few of them learned, in retrospect, that what they thought would be a rewarding career sometimes turned out to be a mismatch for their true passions.

Today there is clearly less pressure to get it right the first time. But the advice of the Class of 1963 still has merit for those who’d rather not flounder or waste precious time on a less-than-thoughtful career choice. Do not consult us, they collectively say. "Listen to your heart."