4 Elements of A Career You’ll Love
Are you unsure what it takes to have a well-aligned career? Do you want to make changes to increase your energy, your happiness, and your excitement around work? If so, this post on the 4 elements of a well-aligned career gives insight on where to put thought and energy as you make important shifts in your career journey! Here’s how:
1. DO WHAT YOU’RE GOOD AT
From folding laundry to public speaking, we all have strengths in different areas of our lives. Let’s pay attention to those strengths! Confidence in your future work-life is key, and what better way to be confident, than to pick things you know you’re great at?
Finding tasks and skills you feel capable of performing in an excellent fashion encourages willingness to show up and show-off those abilities. No one truly enjoys day in and day out of work that they feel they’re struggling with. What if you could build a day around all the tasks you consider yourself a whiz at performing?
Not sure what those may be? Think about what friends or colleagues ask you for help with, or when they ask you for advice, what are they asking about… These can give you starting points for your “what do I rock at?” brainstorm.
2. DO WHAT YOU ENJOY
When you love what you do, you do more. If you enjoy your work, you’ll be willing, able, and excited, to imagine a future self in that arena. You’ll picture yourself 5 years from now and see that the work you’ve started fits in perfectly in supporting that ideal future-you. When you picture yourself in ideal future, you become invested and eager to plan out how to make that future a reality. It becomes easier to create a development plan, even easier to stick to it.
When you do what you enjoy, you also find people and interactions you enjoy. Yes, you’ll find yourself having meaningful and smile-worthy relationships with colleagues, clients, and other pieces of your career community. I know it may seem hard to believe, but It is possible to like most everything you do and everyone you talk to in your work day.
3. DO WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS
What you do matters. Why? How can what you are good at and what you enjoy fill a need in the world? There is a need out there that you are perfectly suited for filling and giving back expertise, time, and skills to others.
Research industries of interest and reflect on your own values to find a niche that aligns with what it means TO YOU to do good in the world. The core of the work that you do should contribute to the values you hold dear. What does your future industry believe in and how does this resonate with your soul and meaningful life? You can come away from a work day feeling fulfilled and having made your community and world better.
4. DO WHAT PEOPLE WILL PAY FOR
There are perfect clients and business practices out there for you. It is not a bad thing to price your services, talent, skills, and work accordingly.
You deserve compensation that takes care of your needs in life and values your time highly. Unsure of what pricing feels right? There are resources out there to help you find what is appropriate for you, your industry, and your clients.
BONUS: FIND A STORYLINE
So, you want a well-aligned career… good news! You’ve already started. All the things you’ve done prior to this moment were imbued with your values, decisions, skills, and interests. These threads (even if they’re small) connect all that you’ve done to the future you are imagining. You’ll bring transferable skills to each new position making your career the unique story that fulfills you.
If you’re feeling like nothing you’ve done up until this point has helped you towards the goal of a well-aligned career, let’s chat. We can discuss just what the past has taught you and how you’ll carry that story forward into an abundant and bright future.
There are so many ways to make progress and discovery on the four elements of a well-aligned career. Don’t worry if you get stuck on one or more; or if you have so many good ideas it is hard to narrow them down—it is all part of the process to a well-aligned career that feels just right FOR YOU.
