Be very passionate and very selfish for a moment. (A word on selfishness.) Earlier I spoke about egos and the need to repress self-glorification. I believe that’s the right but I also believe we have a mission in life.
There’s an anonymous quote I really like which is:
Our talent is a gift to us. What we do with it is our gift back.
So what is your gift and what are you going to do with it? And I want you to have a blank sheet of paper in front of you. This is about what you want, what you really really want-not what you could achieve.
Other factors may get involved as you think harder about it. There may for instance be family or geographical issues (“I’d love to work overseas, but I have an ill mother-in-law and my wife needs to be near her,” ”I want to work for a small charity but I’ve gotten used to a rather extravagant lifestyle with a passion for opera, soccer, and antiquarian books”) but, right now, focus on what you want deep in your gut.
Time to say, ”I’ve been in corporate life forever and I want to start my own business” or ”I’m teaching and I want to make money” – Time to tell you the truth instead of hoping you’ll chance upon the ideal career destination by luck.
Here is a list of statements that you must respond to-don’t think too hard-this is “intuition” not “brain” time. The statement will indicate what you most want as a career destination – just put them in order: