Word on the street is that at least 70% of the workforce does not enjoy the work they do. That is unfathomable to me! Why would you spend 80% of your waking hours in a place you don't love? Let me guess....It starts with a compromise....
"I don't really love this job, company, boss.....but I don't want to be unemployed for another 3 months, so I'll take it until something better comes along."
...Then you look up and thirty years have passed.
The moment you accept what does not genuinely engage you, the road veers from the cliff to the middle earth highway.
It is becoming increasingly prevalent that more than money, career path, work/life balance, or yoga at lunch; people want to do work that means something. Now more than ever, companies are emphasizing employee engagement, culture, and transparent talent management. Everyone is looking for a turnkey solution to make their company the best place to work.
There is no turnkey solution!
Get Inspired...and Stay Inspired
You might feel a tear slide down your cheek when a movie helps you remember what genuinely matters. You wipe the snot with your popcorn and when the movie is over you get back to your boring life. How can you maintain that feeling of inspiration every day?
In the same way you cannot buy engagement, you cannot create inspiration where it doesn't exist. If you pretend to be a vibrant, inspired person; you will probably be perceived as the creepy old guy. Those who love what they do need not put on a facade. I could care less about fashion but if a particular designer is genuinely passionate about their work, I will listen attentively.
That's the key: to have so much conviction in what you do that people cannot help but get pulled into your world! The goal is to have people desiring your help to the extent that they cannot sleep without it.
You have to earn it!
To have what you want you have to sacrifice, endure, and adapt. You do not, however, have to force yourself to compromise. To be empathetic is far different than to give up. If you are arrogant, you will experience success alone (and that is not success at all). To take others along with you will require you to be selfless. You can be equal parts selfless and self-confident, they are one-in-the-same.
Believe In What You Do
No job is perfect. There are assholes everywhere. With that said, you can ruin something you love by allowing mundane detail to derail the ultimate goal. Don't kill the magic by fussing over the color of the rabbit in the hat!
Steve Jobs had commented that in order to succeed you have to love what you do. He said that anything worth doing takes hard work and a great deal of perseverance. In order to succeed you will have to fail famously....it is easier to endure failure when you love what you do.
Is it worth painting a picture if the process of making the art is painstaking? Would you want to play a sport you dislike simply because you know you can win? There is a difference between playing to your skill set and committing to that which you genuinely enjoy....hopefully these paths meet in the middle of your big, beautiful heart!
Don't Forget to Remember!
Dave
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