Discovering Your True Calling

Ultimately, your real calling in life would be to:

A) do something that you love to do, or
b) do something that you're good at.

If you get lucky, what you do would involve both of these. That isn't too difficult to accomplish, right?

So why the endless, great, and mysterious search for the true calling in life?

If you were told that, without a doubt, you would succeed, that you couldn't fail at your chosen career, then chances are you wouldn't have a problem deciding what to do. Most people have an answer when it's put that way.

So again, why are the vast majority of people searching for their calling in life?

The two main reasons for this are:

1) Fear: If you're like me, then you've always known what you really want to do with your life. But for some reason, you just can't really consider it. Possibly you took the wrong job right out of high school or college based on circumstances such as the loss of another job, the lure of big money, or the advice of someone else , etc. As your life progressed, you've come to accept things how they are, stuck, or even fearful to take the risks. You become overwhelmed with current circumstances that you can't fathom making a change that could cause you further difficulties. Or.....

2) Maybe you honestly don't know what you want to do. Now, this is the hardest one for me to understand but it happens.

Now, I know why you've come here and what you're looking for. Yes, you can have what you're looking for. However, I won't give you a magic formula like so many people try to sell to you. I've said it before and I'll say it again, career testing and self assessments alone are great self-discovery tools but they're not going to magically reveal hidden information about yourself. You already know who you are.

Moving On

I find it hard to believe that you wouldn't know at least what a few of your talents and abilities are. You've been living long enough to know what you can and can't do, what turns you on and makes you tick. If you don't know these things, then it's time to stop, sit down, and figure yourself out. Be totally honest with yourself and you'll come up with some honest answers.

It might help if you made a list

I know what you're thinking. Not another list!!! But it might prove to be just the tool you need.

Make a list of careers that attract you. If you are having trouble coming up with this list, you can find an alphabetical list of occupations, their definitions, and wage stats on my site.

Make a list of what you love to do and what you're good at. Don't foget to include hobbies, passions, and whatever you do in your spare time. Your hobbies and passions could be your ticket to uncovering your true calling.

Now make another list like the last one. Make this one, however, as if it was five years ago. Ten years ago. Include everything. You can make a profession out of many things. Then pick the top 5 that feel the best and go from there.

There you have it. Your calling.

The real reason that people miss out on their life goal is that they don't work to discover ways to make their livelihood doing what they like to do or what they're good at. They consider it impossible to accomplish.

So, what's your goal in life?

For many of the people who live lucrative and satisfying lives, the answer is simple. I'm sure you've heard this before: