3 Steps to Find Your Passion and Explore Different Career Paths

"For many today, the toughest part of a 9 – 5 is going through each day without hitting someone in the face."

This is a quote from a disgruntled anonymous employee for a study done by Gallup, "State of the Global Workplace".

Most people hate their jobs and think that the grass will be greener on the other side.

But that doesn't mean you should not attempt to find a job that aligns with your values and ideals.

Here are 3 simple steps to get started:

1. Reflect on your interests, values, and strengths to identify your passions.

The name of the game is to stay in your lane.

People have been taught that taking an easy path is looked upon as weak. This is not necessarily the case all of the time.

If finding a career that aligns with you is your goal, the path is going to be difficult.

The key is to find the easiest difficult path.

You make this easier by finding your natural strengths, figuring out what you value as a person, and what you actually care about. This is the process of staying in your lane.

This path isn't for others. It is only for you.

Find your interests:

• What got you excited as a kid

• What is something you would do for free

• What gets you excited when you start talking about it

Find your values:

• What are common themes that come up in your life

• What are deal breakers when it comes to jobs

• What are you not willing to put up with in your place of employment

Find your strengths:

• What can you do in your sleep that comes naturally

• What do people tell you that you are good at

• Where did you add the most value in your past jobs

2. Research different industries and job roles to learn more about available opportunities.

We are living in the digital age of opportunities.

You will always get what you are searching for. If you don't search, you will never find what you are looking for.

Before you begin the search, you need to take inventory of these things:

• What are your strong skills

• What are your weak skills

• What jobs did you hate in the past

• What jobs did you love in the past

• What is the balance between pay and passion

After you start searching for jobs or careers and narrow down your list, make a timeline of how long it will take to pursue these jobs, time plays a factor if you will stay the course and are willing to sacrifice that time.

3. Experiment with internships, volunteering, or side projects to gain hands-on experience in different fields.

Experimenting leads to discovery.

Experimenting with different career paths also can be risky depending on what your journey has been like.

If you are in your early 20s to late 20s, internships or volunteering might be an option. If you are past your 30s to 40s, creating a passion project or side project may be another option.

Most people will have a full-time job that takes up most of their time. Finding your passionate career will take some extra effort outside of your 9 -5 job.

How do you effectively experiment with the work responsibilities of a full-time job?

• What is your circadian clock like? What time of day do you have the most energy? Start from there and try to fit your internship, volunteer opportunity, or passion project into that time slot.

• Make sure you are passionate about the side project because you won't get paid at first. Just like anything else in life, dues are being paid.

• Make a strategic plan on how this side project will help you get to the long-term goal of your ideal career.

There isn't a such thing as the perfect career but having a career that aligns with everything you stand for puts you in a small percentage of the global population.

if you have a job that has more positives the negatives then you have succeeded, unlike the rest of the population.

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Break free from the mental matrix of everyday life, start living in freedom, and start to create your ideal life. — https://bit.ly/3tCBvjK