Love What You Do in Life and Leadership
There’s a saying of “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”, which I always thought was a diluted lie to make others feel better about their 9-5s. I mean no one with a real job would rather be on the clock than stay at home bingeing Netflix, right? While I believe there’s a time and place for Netflix, those wise words have a point.
Choosing a career field that you are passionate about takes away some of the soul-sucking “am I just a cog in the machine?” feeling. A report by The Conference Board found that only 54% of Americans are satisfied with their job. Are you satisfied in your current position? If not, are there ways to make it better? You deserve a work environment that helps you feel as though you’re making an impact, and it might just take a few steps for that to be the outcome.
In my interview with Victoria Cairl, Founder of VC, LLC, she shared how she’s witnessed others accept a job offer and decide that they’ll just live their lives outside of that job. “That’s a big chunk of your time to not be doing what it is that you enjoy or something you feel is helpful,” Victoria exclaimed. She’s one of the lucky ones, she found her passion for Theatre early on, and stuck to that path.
“You spend 70 percent of your life at work, you better love what you do.”
It’s so easy to lose track of who and why we are serving. As a leader, you can help others feel more purposeful in the workplace. In a global study, 79% of employees who quit their job cite ‘lack of appreciation’ as the key reason. Keeping the team happy creates a more positive culture, and you’ll see more productivity and return percentage in that sort of environment.
As a coach, I help people become more aware of their passions and how that can be channeled into their work. No change is too small when it comes to incorporating happiness into everyday life. When Victoria explained that she wanted others to remember her she said, “I want them to say ‘she was passionate, she was kind, she was fair’, not ‘oh wow she worked 60 hour weeks, good for her!” That’s a really powerful distinction for high performers. We can get caught up in hustle as a badge of honor - but what is it really for?
How will people remember you? Asking this of ourselves periodically can serve as a barometer as we make all sorts of decisions in career and life. If you know my story(link to one of the Love What Matters blogs here) then you know much this way of thinking informs every element of my work. How can you let it in for you? We never know when our number will be called...and you deserve to be fully aligned, fulfilled, and passionate about each day.
If you are struggling with that, let’s talk.
Full interview with Victoria Cairl below!
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