"There is no ladder, nor wrong turns," says Bedford. "If you follow your curiosity, there is only continuous learning, and then all it takes is the courage to follow it and to seize any opportunity that arises. Life is about figuring out who you are, where your greatest gifts and talents lie, and how you can make the greatest contribution to making the greatest difference in the world."

Zhao Zeyu, project manager with ACCESS Health International, a nonprofit healthcare think tank focused on improving healthcare quality and accessibility, says that there are three things one needs to become a real change-maker.

"Passion is the first thing that leads you to causes that are dear to your heart and that you're willing to spend time and effort on," says Zhao.

"The second is expertise, because the lack of it would inevitably entail blind, ineffective, or even counterproductive efforts. The last thing－the one thing that I am still lacking－is proximity."

Zhao's job involves doing substantial research to uncover policy and business innovations in healthcare around the globe. However, he says that his involvement with the people he wants to help has been "indirect" as their struggles and predicaments are only stories in the news and statistics in research papers.

"That is why I will pursue a doctoral degree in law in 2019, where I can get closer to the problems and the people. It is only through proximity that we can effect real and lasting change," he says.