“If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Wherever you are -- if you are following your bliss, you are enjoying that refreshment, that life within you, all the time.” –Joseph Campbell
Occupation: what you do with your time.
Recently, I had an encounter with a sales representative named Tom. When he finished telling me about the services his company had to offer, we got to chatting about jobs in general. He said to me, “It’s tough out there. You gotta make a living, pay bills, and work hard. When I was in college, I got my degree and got out. And I have been in sales ever since.”
It’s clear that Tom has a job in which he is using his strengths: self-motivated and outgoing, he is good at talking to people. In his line of work, however, success is measured by the number of units he sells. And I doubt that Tom is truly passionate about adhesive flooring.
Sadly, our society has pushed the philosophy that you find a job in order to make money. If you happen to like your job, that’s an added bonus. If you don’t like your job, well, suck it up—neither do the rest of us. This is so depressing. Making a living should not come at the expense of having a life.
Work for your bliss, not for your wallet. Otherwise, at the end of the day, you will be missing something that money can’t buy: time to do something that really matters to you. When you find a career that balances interests, values, skills and personal strengths, the result is worth much more than the sum of its parts (or paychecks). Bliss, the deep satisfaction and fulfillment that comes when you put yourself to your highest and best use, arises naturally. The key? Get your strengths working for you, then put yourself to work for a cause that means the world.
Keep in mind that your most valuable strengths aren’t taught in classrooms, and they are not dictated to you by your parents. They are inherent in your personality and cultivated through real life experience and interaction. Examples of these “signature strengths” are curiousity, optimism, persistence, humor, kindess, and bravery. Every environment presents you with opportunities for self-cultivation. No matter where you are or what you are doing, identify your strong points and begin to exercise them more consciously in your life. From grunt work to glory, developing your strengths will keep you moving toward meaningful occupation—even when you feel stuck. And most importantly, spend time with exploring your hobbies, interests, and passions. They hold clues to your life's work.
Occupation: what you do with your time.
Recently, I had an encounter with a sales representative named Tom. When he finished telling me about the services his company had to offer, we got to chatting about jobs in general. He said to me, “It’s tough out there. You gotta make a living, pay bills, and work hard. When I was in college, I got my degree and got out. And I have been in sales ever since.”
It’s clear that Tom has a job in which he is using his strengths: self-motivated and outgoing, he is good at talking to people. In his line of work, however, success is measured by the number of units he sells. And I doubt that Tom is truly passionate about adhesive flooring.
Sadly, our society has pushed the philosophy that you find a job in order to make money. If you happen to like your job, that’s an added bonus. If you don’t like your job, well, suck it up—neither do the rest of us. This is so depressing. Making a living should not come at the expense of having a life.
Work for your bliss, not for your wallet. Otherwise, at the end of the day, you will be missing something that money can’t buy: time to do something that really matters to you. When you find a career that balances interests, values, skills and personal strengths, the result is worth much more than the sum of its parts (or paychecks). Bliss, the deep satisfaction and fulfillment that comes when you put yourself to your highest and best use, arises naturally. The key? Get your strengths working for you, then put yourself to work for a cause that means the world.
Keep in mind that your most valuable strengths aren’t taught in classrooms, and they are not dictated to you by your parents. They are inherent in your personality and cultivated through real life experience and interaction. Examples of these “signature strengths” are curiousity, optimism, persistence, humor, kindess, and bravery. Every environment presents you with opportunities for self-cultivation. No matter where you are or what you are doing, identify your strong points and begin to exercise them more consciously in your life. From grunt work to glory, developing your strengths will keep you moving toward meaningful occupation—even when you feel stuck. And most importantly, spend time with exploring your hobbies, interests, and passions. They hold clues to your life's work.
The Career Services Center offers two free self-assessment tools that can help you gain a better understanding of your inherent capabilities. FOCUS is a self-paced, online career and education planning tool which enables you to assess your aptitudes and intrigues, and explore career fields and areas of study that are most compatible with your assessment results. TypeFocus assesses your personality type and offers insight into career choices that best fit your personality. You can make an appointment with a career advisor to review your results.
Do what is you, love what you do!
Do what is you, love what you do!
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