I’ve never worked a day in my life
September 21, 2009 § 11 Comments
“Find a job that you love and you will never work another day in your life.” – Confucius
I guess that quote from the great Chinese philosopher makes me the biggest slacker in the world because I love what I do. I always have. And I always will.
Oh sure, there have been days where I have not wanted to deal with a certain issue. And there were times when I knew an individual was going to be bothersome. But I can say, without a doubt, I have found enjoyment in every position I’ve ever held.
And there have been a few along the way.
I think this lifetime passion has happened for a few reasons.
I see what I do as a continuum of skill building and experiences. While I have had several positions, and operated my own business in the communications field, everything I’ve done has been a clear stepping stone to the next stage in my employment.
I’ve found variation in what I’ve done and have never allowed myself to get bored or stuck in a rut – common phrases from people who need a change but are doing nothing towards it.
New opportunities, creating greater challenges have always arrived for me long before complacency has had a chance to set in. You can always return to what you were doing before, but if you don’t examine the possibilities, you will likely be saying, “what if” some day.
You will notice I haven’t used the word “job” yet. I see what I do to be more of a calling or a vocation – to distribute information and to tell the stories that need to be told.
In my current role, that means promoting the City of Grande Prairie. When I began my career, my duty was to tell readers about the exploits of the St. Paul Jr. Canadiens. And profiling the local daycare director in the St. Paul Journal would also land me a future wife.
Perhaps my Dad rubbed off on me. It’s always been instinctive to challenge myself to do my best, and then some every day. I have never lost that thirst, that motivation. It was his attitude of striving to always come home having a job well done that inspired me.
Now no one will ever say I am the life of the party. But I do seek to find fun in what I do. And I figure, if you are going to spend most of your waking hours doing something, enjoy it.
I am also not one for setting one-, two- or five-year goals, but I do encourage readers to take action when they know it is time to move on or to move up in the organization.
Don’t wait for your supervisor to recognize you want to do more or that you are seeking new opportunities. As a manager, I try to be in tune with my employees, but I am not a mind reader. A good supervisor will be only too willing to listen to your career aspirations.
And if you really are in a poor work environment, don’t allow yourself to be mired in drudgery. As the words from a popular Trooper song remind us:
If you don’t like what you got, why don’t you change it?
If your world is all screwed up, then rearrange it.
Raise a little hell, raise a little hell, raise a little hell!
I am not recommending you go postal … just be the master of your own destiny so you can find satisfaction in your own career.
The Muse and Views 
I couldn’t agree more. It’s a great way to live life. But how does one go about finding their passion?
I think you find your passion instinctively, that it’s not something you have to search out. Although it may not be immediately obvious, passion is not one of those things where you have to go to the top of the mount to ask the wise, old wizard the meaning of life. The real question is more what you do with your passion once you find it. I believe many people don’t act upon their passion because they let other things get in the way, other priorities, family, spouses, etc.
I had a friend once ask me – what’s worse to never find your passion or never fully use it. I swear it’s to never fully use it and that’s why I write every day of my life!
Thanks David – great blog!
Ronda
David, your post is both timely and poignant. I have indeed raised a little hell lately, and it did some good to my career.
Great start to your blog! I look forward to reading more. I hope this adventure is a success for you both.
That is great, Laura, as that is what Wendy and I have chiefly set out to do … to inspire others with our perspectives and to encourage others to take action. I am glad if my writings motivate people, even in a small way.
Ronda – Isn’t that a bit like the chicken or the egg? If you never find your passion, how can you fully use it?
David – Before I actually found my passion, I was actively in search of it. Something in me said that whatever I was doing was not the way I wanted to live my life. But I had no clue how I DID want to live my life. So for me, it was a lot of trial and error, until I “instinctively” felt like I was onto something. I think, like anything, it’s different for everyone. Like finding anything that sticks in your life, some find it early in life, some not until the very end.
David,
A great first post. We former sports reporters, I think, are the lucky ones. With 15 years in the newsprint industry, I never once felt like it was a job. I awoke every morning with the knowledge I was getting paid to do stuff others would do for free.
There’s been a couple of glitches in the program since but landing in Web writing with Shaw has become a close second to journalism. It’s relaxed, focused and creative work.
Finding your passion can be a rather arbitrary thing, to answer Wendy’s question. Some of us, like me, were lucky to discover it at a young age. Matter of fact, I heard myself blurting out ‘journalism’ in a ‘what do you want to do with your life’ session in Grade 8. The next year, my English teacher dubbed me the editor of our junior high newspaper.
And so it began, a lifelong pursuit to make coin off my talents as a writer.
So maybe it’s about learning what makes you happy and fulfilled and figuring out how to turn it into a career.
But I guarantee, few of you will ever be as lucky as a sports writer. 😉
Yes, Angela, I think starting out as a sports writer may have been the basis of how I conduct myself. After all, I am also passionate about sports … so maybe having the opportunity to start my career by writing about something I am passionate about got my career off to a great start.
I agree, I was passionate about trains since I was very young. It was always a dream of mine, one I thought would stay a dream. In high school I chose a path of computer information systems- which I also enjoyed, but I saw it more as a tool/stepping stone I could use in any other career. It was fortunate timing that after I graduated MRC that I couldn’t get a job in my field, and checked out the rail traffic control program at SAIT. Now I am in a job I absolutely love. Can’t imagine doing anything else 🙂
great post David! I agree entirely with this attitude. Congrats on the blog — may you and Wendy receive an ever-growing list of regular readers.
I realized as I clicked on this link, David, that this is the first blog you posted on ‘The Muse and Views.’ I was curious to read your earlier work! As usual, it is pensive and well written, and makes one stop and think.
You started out with (as you are known to do) a quote that resonates with you:
“Find a job that you love, and you will never work another day in your life.” – Confucius
You immediately professed that you are the ‘biggest slacker in the world’, but thankfully it’s because you ‘love what you do, always have, and always will.’ Those words create a powerful phrase as they indicate that you will always ensure this to be the case.
Having that sense of positivity that surrounds you is contagious to others. Besides that, it’s motivational for them as well as yourself. You were able to share with your readers that although you love your career, that there have been times when you were faced with tasks, issues, or even individuals that you didn’t really care to deal with. Somehow though, you can sort through it all and look at the whole picture.
You have the type of career that builds upon itself, with skills and experiences that you have experienced, and continue yet to do so. You mentioned that everything you have done in the communications field (which happens to be a lifetime passion for you) has been a stepping stone to the next stage in your employment.
In my own reflections as I am reading through this blog, I’m reminded that my Dad had been in one career for a long time – selling mobile homes initially, to becoming a licensed realtor, and finally, to sharing God’s word with people when he became a minister. What an odd transition one might say – But, not at all! When you look at when he was selling product (homes) to people he was a real ‘people person’ who knew how to effectively communicate with people. When he was performing pastoral care duties such as tending to the sick in the hospital, the dying, the fearful and when spreading God’s word, he was sharing his lively, energetic and engaging ‘people skills’ while reaching out to them, as he had trained for and experienced broadly in his career span.
Moving from real estate to becoming a minister was a more natural step than anyone imagined it would be, but he knew himself well enough to understand it was a natural progression for him. He recognized when it was time to change paths when he was 45 years old. I’m glad he followed what was a true calling for him. Even though he had enjoyed his real estate career immensely, he enjoyed his pastoral career on a deeper and more satisfying level. Best of all? He never let himself get bored or stuck in a rut. He did something about it when it was time.
For yourself, David, you recollected that new opportunities came your way, creating greater challenges. You never had a chance to pay yourself on the back as you were always steam rolling forward, looking for new challenges and opportunities, all the while feeling content. There is something to be said for this! The level of commitment that takes, while understanding and fully knowing yourself, is a great feat.
I have noted before, you don’t use the word ‘job’, opting for a career to be thought of as a calling or vocation. That is a wise way to view it!
I mentioned previously, I write a response to blogs only as I read through them, not after. So, while I was referring to my Dad’s change of career, your sentiments elicit the perfect scenario for what I was trying to accurately describe: In my Dad’s case, he certainly was ‘distributing information and telling stories that needed to be told’, (as you mentioned a calling is) to those who sought that information.
You are still with the City of Grande Prairie today, close to a decade later. It’s amazing how your initial duties in your career led you right to your wife – it’s as though career and personal life intertwined at exactly the right intersection at exactly the right time. I think of this as the Back to the Future ‘bolt of lightning’ 1.21 gigawatts strike, when life events coincide as they should!
In earlier (later dates, actually) blogs of yours that I have read, I recognized the strong worth ethic that both you and your Dad possess. I agree he did rub off onto you and has given you a great deal of gumption in life.
In earlier reflections, you saw that you wanted a different path than your father and that was one of creating a balance of working hard in your career, with enjoyment. Because you know you spend long hours at work, you understand it’s important to spend most of that time enjoying it.
It’s understandable that you are not into setting ‘goals’ in terms of timespans such as one, two, or five-year goals. When that’s implemented, I feel plans can go awry. It is probably better to keep an eye on things on a regular basis, rather than setting up potential roadblocks of setting timelines that have a stringent feel to them. Being aware of knowing when to move forward, or, sometimes, even back – to what a person was doing, is important to pay heed to.
As you brought up, don’t wait for opportunity to come to you, but seek out opportunities by sharing aspirations with others. I recall asking for my first raise when I worked in the cosmetics industry. I was 18 years old and had worked for a few months by then. I prepared detailed notes on my salary, the longevity of the rate, my sales records, including a graph on sales growth.
My employer sat and listened to my spiel; I recall how nervous I was to discuss it with her. She took the papers from me, folded them in half, setting them aside. She looked me in the eye and told me, “Erin – You deserve a raise. I just hadn’t thought to do that myself. I’m glad you brought it up.” Even if she had declined my request for a raise, it was still an excellent opportunity of preparation in life, for extending my reach in whatever I sought.
You gave another set of quotes that are perfect for this blog: You referred to Trooper’s song lyrics, for anyone looking for a little motivation in their own life’s calling or opportunities:
“If you don’t like what you got, why don’t you change it?
If your world is all screwed up, then rearrange it.
Raise a little hell, raise a little hell, raise a little hell!”
That is exactly what I plan on doing in life! I’m at a crossroads in life with my own calling, seeking more now than I have in the past. I aim to raise a little hell and become master of my own destiny, for an ultimately satisfying career and in turn – life!
Intuitively I plan on finding my passion for whatever my calling is. From there, I will know exactly what to do with my passion once I find it. And if I don’t? Then I will wing it. It’s better to try, than not. Just like you stated in this poignant statement that you came up with: “You can always return to what you were doing before, but if you don’t examine the possibilities, you will likely be saying, “what if” some day.”
Some people don’t follow through on their passion because of other opportunities, family, or other obstacles. But – one must take care of themselves before they can be of merit to others.