Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Ada yang memilih karier cepat, ada yang fokus pada keterampilan dulu. - Some choose a fast career, some focus on skills first.

Literally, ada means “there is / there are / exist(s)”.
In the structure ada yang + verb, it idiomatically means “there are those who … / some (people) …”.

So Ada yang memilih … is best understood as “Some (people) choose …”, not just a neutral “there is” statement.

Where is the word “people” in this sentence? How do we know it’s talking about people?

The word “people” is implied, not stated.

Indonesian often omits orang (“person/people”) when it’s obvious from context.
The pattern ada yang + verb is commonly used to talk about different people doing different things.

So Ada yang memilih karier cepat really means:

Ada (orang) yang memilih karier cepat → “There are people who choose a fast career.”

The word orang can be added, but it’s not required.

What is the function of yang in ada yang memilih karier cepat?

Here yang works like “who / that / the ones who” in English.

Structure: ada yang + [verb phrase]
Rough meaning: “there are those who [verb phrase]”

So:

ada yang memilih karier cepat ≈ “there are those who choose a fast career / some people choose a fast career.”

Yang introduces a kind of relative clause (“who choose a fast career”) referring to the implied people.

Is ada yang … ada yang … a fixed pattern meaning “some … others …”?

Yes. Ada yang … ada yang … is a very common pattern meaning:

“Some (people) … some (others) …”
Or: “There are those who … and there are those who …”

In your sentence:

Ada yang memilih karier cepat → Some (people) choose a fast career.
Ada yang fokus pada keterampilan dulu → Some (others) focus on skills first.

This pattern is very natural in both spoken and written Indonesian.

Do we have to repeat ada yang in the second part, or could we say it just once?

You can say it just once, but repeating it is very natural and clear. For example:

Ada yang memilih karier cepat, ada yang fokus pada keterampilan dulu.
(The original; clear and balanced.)

You might also hear shorter forms in casual speech, like:

Ada yang memilih karier cepat, yang lain fokus pada keterampilan dulu.
(“Some choose a fast career, others focus on skills first.”)

But when you want that neat parallel structure, repeating ada yang is normal and sounds good.

Does memilih karier cepat mean “choose a career quickly” or “choose a fast career”?

It means “choose a fast/rapid career (path)”, not “choose a career quickly”.

karier cepat → “fast career / rapid career progression” (here cepat describes karier).
If you wanted “choose a career quickly,” you’d more likely say memilih karier dengan cepat or cepat-cepat memilih karier, etc.

So in this sentence, the idea is about the type of career path (one that is fast), not the speed of the choosing action.

Is karier cepat a common phrase? Would karier yang cepat be more natural?

Karier cepat is understandable and acceptable, especially in context, but it can feel a bit abbreviated. More explicit options include:

karier yang cepat berkembang → a career that develops quickly
karier yang cepat naik → a career that advances quickly

You can say karier yang cepat, but Indonesian often likes to add a more specific verb (berkembang, naik, maju) to describe what is “fast” about the career.

In everyday speech, people will understand karier cepat as “a career that progresses quickly” from context.

What exactly does dulu mean in fokus pada keterampilan dulu?

Dulu basically means “first / for now / before anything else” in this context.

Common nuances of dulu:

“first, for the time being”:
- Fokus pada keterampilan dulu. → “Focus on skills first (for now).”
It can also mean “in the past”, but here the meaning is clearly “first / before other things.”

So fokus pada keterampilan dulu = “(they) focus on skills first, before focusing on something like career advancement.”

Can dulu be placed in a different position in this sentence?

Yes, but the most natural place here is at the end. For example:

Ada yang dulu fokus pada keterampilan.
This is possible, but now dulu can more easily be heard as “used to (in the past)”, depending on context.
Ada yang fokus dulu pada keterampilan.
This is also okay and still means “first / for now focus on skills.”

In practice, putting dulu at the end of the phrase (keterampilan dulu) is the clearest way to mean “first / for now” in this sentence.

Why do we say fokus pada keterampilan, not just fokus keterampilan or fokus ke keterampilan?

The standard, more formal pattern is: fokus pada + noun.

fokus pada keterampilan = focus on skills.

In everyday speech you might also hear:

fokus ke keterampilan – more informal/colloquial.
Just fokus keterampilan is not standard; it sounds incomplete or like a noun phrase “skill focus”.

So:

For correct, neutral Indonesian: fokus pada keterampilan is best.

What tense is this sentence in? How do we know if it’s present or future?

Indonesian generally doesn’t mark tense the way English does. This sentence is time-neutral.

Ada yang memilih karier cepat, ada yang fokus pada keterampilan dulu.
Could be translated as:
- “Some people choose a fast career, some (others) focus on skills first.” (general truth / present)
- “Some people will choose a fast career, some will focus on skills first.” (future, if context is future)

To make time explicit, you would add time words like:

Sekarang (now)
nanti (later)
akan (will), etc.

Without those, you rely on context to choose the English tense.

Can I say Ada orang yang memilih karier cepat instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say:

Ada orang yang memilih karier cepat, ada orang yang fokus pada keterampilan dulu.

This is fully correct. The difference:

With orang: slightly more explicit and sometimes a bit more formal or careful.
Without orang: more compact; the “people” is implied by the ada yang pattern.

Both are natural; the version without orang is very common in conversation and writing.

Why don’t we say “their career” or “their skills”? How is possession shown here?

Indonesian often omits possessive words like “my/your/their” when it’s obvious from context.

karier here is naturally understood as their own career.
keterampilan here is understood as their own skills.

If you really want to be explicit, you could say:

karier mereka → their career(s)
keterampilan mereka → their skills

For example:

Ada yang memilih karier mereka dengan cepat (sounds a bit wordy/less natural here).

In most cases, just karier and keterampilan are enough; Indonesian relies on context more than English for possession.