Chapter One
Putting the Purpose Back Into Your
Career & Your Life
Imagine having a career that matches your
personality and desires so closely, that it would be hard to believe you
were put on earth to do anything else. The kind of job that makes you
jump out of bed on Monday morning ready to take on the world. Wherever
you go, you radiate dedication, excitement, even love for your work.
That sparkle in your eyes tells the whole story.
People like that are just lucky, we say.
They knew somebody or were in the right place at the right time. But
most of the time, those happy, passionate people didn't fall into their
careers. They just always knew what they wanted to do as if they had a
mystical compass showing them the way. If they got off track, they just
re-evaluated, figured out where they were supposed to be going and got
right back on.
Most of us aren't fortunate enough to have
this kind of internal directional system with bells that go off the
moment we lose track of our purpose. Or do we? How many times have you
said, "If I could only open my own business, I'd be happy,"
Or, "Someday I'll go back and finish that degree." What makes
some people dream and others do? We’re thoroughly convinced that it’s
all a matter of taking the time to find the purpose of your life. Notice
that we said of your life and not in your life. We’re
not talking philosophy here, we’re simply talking about creating a
perfect blend of your interests, natural talents, your wants and your
needs.
When people are truly focused and
passionate, really believe in what they're going after, that's when they
succeed. And that's what makes the difference.
What is Life Steps?
Life Steps is a program of guided exercises
designed to help you realize your inborn talents and dreams. Our main
goal is to bring to the surface the person you originally were before
school, family and society got a hold of you and molded you into what
they wanted you to be. Once you rediscover your original dreams and
abilities, Life Steps will show you how to turn those dreams into
reality with a new career, business or a new focus for your life’s
work. After all, they’re your dreams, so the way you decide to use
them, is entirely up to you!
Life Steps is not a career counseling
guide. It wasn't designed to test your aptitude or job skills or to tell
you specifically where you fit into the job market. It won’t tell you
how to write a resume or how to interview. There are already hundreds of
terrific books that can help you with that. So why did we write LifeSteps? We did it to fill the needs of people who are stuck in a career
or lifestyle that is completely wrong for them and need to find their
way back to their first love.
So who are we? We’re a mother and
daughter writing team who have had a lifetime of jobs and careers. Some
were wonderful, and others were so horrible that we’ve totally blocked
them from our memories!! Right in the middle of that spectrum are the
jobs that whether you mean them to or not, turn into long term careers.
What we’ve found over the years is that
the people who take the time to examine what they like to do, what they’re
good at, then design a career to match their skills and desires, usually
end up happier, more fulfilled and more prosperous than their peers. You’re
going to spend forty to sixty hours a week, fifty-two weeks a year for
thirty or forty years working? Want to see something really scary? Just
do the math. Forty hours a week, fifty-two weeks a year, for forty
years. That’s eighty-three thousand, two hundred hours of your life
that you’re going to spend at work!
We were watching an interview with actor
Jim Carrey the other day and the interviewer asked him point blank why
he’s still working so hard, making one movie after another. After all,
as he said himself, he’s made so much money, he’ll never have to
work another day in his life. As he thought about it, this wonderful
glow came over that animated face and he answered, "Because I love
to tell stories. I love what I do so much that I can never imagine
retiring, no matter how much money I have." Wow! Can you imagine
what the world would be like if everyone loved his or her job THAT much?
That’s definitely one of the most important goals for our lives and
that’s why we wrote this workbook. We wanted to design a simple,
straightforward book to help you put that kind of love and passion into
every one of those 83,200 hours.
What do you love to do?
Over the next several pages, are exercises
that will help you figure out two things: what you love to do and how
you can make money doing it. Sound simple? Maybe, but then again the
laws of the universe usually are!
The exercises in this book examine six
different areas of your life. One word before you begin. These aren’t
the kind of exercises that you can score and find out what someone else
thinks you should do with the rest of your life. The only expert
analyzing these questions is you. Just do each of the exercises and put
your answers to the side until we’re ready to start sorting them out.
So with no further ado, let’s get started!
