I believe we all have a calling. And so many of us express that purpose through our work. We’re the generation that feels strongly about finding some sort of fulfillment in our nine-to-five. And while many of us hear the annoying nag of wanting to do more in this world, the actual work that needs to be done isn’t always clear. In this episode, I talk about how to find a career or job that is more aligned with your beliefs. This episode was adapted from my original blog post, which ran on May 11, 2015. There’s a YouTube video, too! Growing up, I wasn’t really surrounded by people who were working a job they loved. Like most immigrant children, what I saw growing up was hard, hard work. The thought of doing something that led to happiness wasn’t even a conversation that was had. I was encouraged to follow a safe route: go to college, graduate with one of those formula-style degrees, where you graduate, get a job, and a good salary.But for some reason, I always knew there was more. I knew that life was about more than just surviving. In fact, that formula I was taught just didn’t work for me. I tried really hard — against my best judgment – to follow it, but the results it yielded for me, sucked.I remember applying for law school. Isn’t that what all lost recent grads do? I couldn’t write the admission essay. And I’m a writer. I also remember the time I tried to enroll back into school after graduating to take some prerequisite courses to apply for medical school. Right after, I met up with a friend to tell him how happy I was about what I was doing. And as I was telling him all about it, I was smiling and crying at the same time. We can lie to ourselves, but our bodies will always call us out! I could not stop those tears.Since the minute I stepped a foot in college and I was asked to pick a major, I was determined to figure out what it was that I loved — what made me light up. It wasn’t always easy. And it’s definitely an ever-evolving process, but I did find happiness.So it’s true. You can do something you love — even if you don’t know what that thing is just yet. Don’t stop searching for it. To get you started, I wanted to share a few practices I use whenever I lose sight of that light I’m always trying to stay close to.1. Follow HappinessI’m sure you’ve heard this one before. Yet you feel confused by the concept, right? So, try this: As soon as you wake up in the morning, even while you’re still in your bed, set the intention of finding your happiness. When we bring our minds to a focus point, like finding happiness, it will identify it eventually. But we have to do our part by letting our mind know what we want it to focus on, if not it’ll just flow with the wind like a hot air balloon without direction.When we have no sense of direction, we become frustrated. By setting your internal GPS on happiness, you will start discovering the actions that make you happy. Those actions, ultimately, will offer you a road map to your calling, purpose, dream job … whatever you want to call it.The things that make us happy are clues. Even if your happiness comes from reading celebrity gossip mags, there’s a career that will fit your interested, I promise you. It’s called film publicity!Whatever it is that you discover you love, there’s either a career out there already or there’s a way to make money doing it. Keep searching for what you love and let that feeling show you the way. Take the steps it encourages you to take. Don’t think. Just go.2. Work on SkillsDuring this process, it’s really easy to get caught up in the future. “Where am I headed” or “ Where will this all lead to,” you may ask yourself (over and over again). And to be honest with you, that road may not show up for quite some time. You have to be ok with that. You have to understand that this is a time for exploration. The best part of exploration is that you come out with a bunch of new skills.Now is not a time to worry about mapping out your five-year plan. It’s a time for acquiring skills. Your skills can be writing, sewing, blogging, filmmaking, etc. They’re probably not the end-all for you, but your skills will allow you to communicate and relate to the world.When you find the actions that bring you joy, you’re going to combine them with your skills to make something really beautiful.Writing is something I found that made me happy. I started by writing for magazines and online publications. But that wasn’t it for me. I knew there was something more for me. But I didn’t get frustrated by not knowing. I knew it would show we me what it wanted to be when the time was right.Eventually, I found it. It’s you! And writing and creating content (two skills I picked up as an editor) is how I communicate with you. Make sense?Pick up your own skills — whatever you’ve been itching to learn and do —, and also appreciate the ones you’re learning in your current job. They’ll help you out one day, promise.3. Share Your WorkAs you probably already know, I’m a huge advocate for blogging. No, I don’t think everyone needs to be a professional blogger. What I do love about blogging is that it gives you the opportunity to share in a much larger space than what most social media platforms allow us. And when we begin to share, those who are stumbling upon our digital homes, begin to associate us with the things that we’re sharing. That’s how opportunities will come your way.So let’s say you’re a frustrated attorney right now. All your friends and acquaintances know you as an attorney. But since you’re trying to find a career you love, you’ve decided to start a blog on your love of sustainable fashion. You have no idea where it’s taking you, but it brings you joy. Since this is a new expertise/skill you’re acquiring, you’ve decided to share it in any way possible. Because you’ve done such a great job of letting everyone you know about your new blog, people start associating you with the girl who talks about sustainable fashion. Coincidentally, one of your Facebook friends is coordinating a sustainable fashion show and she invites you to be a guest speaker. Why? Because you’ve shared your work, and she now sees you as the eco fashion lover/expert and not so much the frustrated attorney.Austin Kleon wrote a great book with that exact title, “Show You’re Work.” It gives all sorts of examples on how you can share your own work and make an impact.If you put everything you learn today into play, you will be well on your way to finding that dream gig. The more committed you are to taking the steps, the quicker it will come. Let me know how it goes for you in the comments below.Much love to you always.
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