One of the most common questions I hear from professionals about their careers is this,
"I want to leave my job, but I'm not passionate about anything. How do I figure out what my passion is?"
It seems like "finding your passion" is like finding the holy grail when it comes to careers.
Even though no one seems to know how or why their passion went into hiding, they are sure that finding it is the key to everlasting happiness.
And just to be clear, the path to everlasting career happiness goes like this —
everlasting career happiness - step by step
1.
Find your passion
2.
Easily find a job centered around that passion
(In fact, someone will probably just recognize your passion and give you a position.)
3.
Leave your current job
4.
Immediately become a standout star in your passion career
5.
Love your work. Love your life. Make gobs of money. Live the good life.
We all want to get on this step-by-step plan. So, where is that pesky passion when you need it?
Here's the thing...
I'm all for pursuing a body of work that ignites our soul. That's part of the reason why we are here and why it feels so good to do fulfilling work. But if it was possible to think, read, worry, or complain your way to passion, every person around the water cooler would have done it by now.
That's not how passion works. Passion comes through mastery, and mastery is a journey, not a destination.
Because mastery is a journey, the discovery of your passion through that mastery is a process that will unfold over time. It won't suddenly show up under a pillow like money from the tooth fairy. Your path toward mastery and passion will evolve and change as your life grows and changes.
Right about now, you're probably thinking, "Well, that's great. That still doesn't get me out of my stressful job and into a career I love. How do I get that?"
Well if you want to find your passion, here's what you do next - Follow your curiosity and take action. Because passion follows action, not thought, you need to get curious about the things that interest you and act.
To begin, take five minutes and journal about any jobs, careers, hobbies, interests, or projects that excite you, motivate you, or makes you go, "hmm...what is that?"
For example, if you've ever thought about being a singer. Write that down. If you just cooked a meal and thought, "I could be a chef." Write that down too. Remember, this is just a journal exercise, not a declaration of your next career. So try not to judge your thoughts or self-edit. Just write down whatever comes to mind. Once you have a list, rank your ideas in order from "I really want to do this" to "I could live without trying this."
Now here's the action part. Once you have this ranked list, commit to fully exploring the top 5-7 ideas as a career. This means reaching out to folks in those fields on LinkedIn, through contacts, and at events. It also might mean attending conferences and learning about skills you'll need to acquire if you want to pursue that field.
Follow your curiosity in that field wherever it leads. And over time, you'll notice that your interest in that field will continue to deepen, or you'll get bored and want to stop. If you get bored and want to stop, move to the next career on the list. But if your interest deepens, then you're on to something. Keep going! You've probably started down that winding path toward your passion.
Do you need help finding your passion? Let's chat. Click this link and book a free career strategy call with me now.