Some thoughts on finding your calling

Not everyone knows what they want to do right away. Some people have done what they thought they wanted to do, only to find it unfulfilling. Some folks have found their work fulfilling for a while or even many years, but then realize that their interest in it has run it's course and it is time for something new.

I meet a fair number of people who feel that everyone else must have gotten clear direction about what their "calling" is except them.

If you are among them, know that many people don't have a clear calling; it's not just you. Also, most "callings" whisper and hint to get your attention rather than beat you over the head with a 2x4. You can miss the subtle signs steering you in the right direction if all you are watching for is a bolt of lightening.

To recognize your "calling:"

1. Be patient and OK with not knowing exactly what you want yet. It will come easier to you without the pressure of your timetable.

2. Quit comparing yourself. To others who appear to know what they want; to family members, and even to your own expectations. Question assumptions about the value of certain types of work.

3. Treat yourself like a research project and take copious notes about what you notice.

4. Get to know yourself. Taking assessments (DiSC is great for this) can help you understand yourself, your tendencies, strengths and likes.

5. Pay attention to your interest and energy level. Notice when you procrastinate certain tasks, are distracted while doing them, and when you lose track of time performing other tasks.

6. Be open to feedback in the form of praise and complaints about your strengths and preferences. Take out the judgement and hear all feedback as information.

7. Be available and open to trying many new things. If the goal is learning, there is no such thing as making a mistake - even if what you learned is that you weren't good at or didn't enjoy something.

8. Pay attention to what you like and don't like. Take notes.

9. Dissect your experiences to learn from them: reflect on what exactly made a positive experience positive for you. Separate the elements of your experience to reflect on your specific reaction to them. Did you enjoy the type of people you interfaced with, your role or the actual functions you performed, or the environment you were in? In the same way don't throw out neutral or positive elements in a negative experience: think "well at least I liked..."

10. Pay attention to processes as well as content. If you grow bored with any new challenge after conquering it, notice the likes and dislikes in your process: it is possible that no one content will be able to satisfy you as much as a certain level of variety and challenge.

Paying attention to your subtle likes and dislikes is like sailing and shifting your sails ever so slightly as you learn to read the winds. In no time you may just find yourself doing "what you are called to do."