Do you love your job?

When I graduated college four years ago I faced corporate America with zest, passion, and enthusiasm.  My energy for contributing my entire being to my job was high.  Four years later, I feel like I am running on a dead-end hamster wheel.  Corporate America is not all that it is cracked up to be, politics plague work environments, generational conflicts barricade collaborative work teams, and passion and energy are misrepresented as threatening and therefore unwanted. All of a sudden I realized that my energy, passion, zest, and enthusiasm dried up. In only four short years, I felt defeated, beat down, and shut out.  After four years of experience, I should have things figured out, right? 

I began to reflect on the steps that I took from the time I graduated until now.  I was attempting to determine my “mis-step” where did I go wrong? I began to believe that my decision to leave acute care nursing to fulfill my passion for wellness was the wrong decision.  Trust me, multiple friends, family, colleagues, patients, and random strangers believe that I am not a “real” nurse because I do not work inside the hospital, and after a while this notion of being “less than a nurse” wears on me.

I decided to read the book, “48 Days to the work you love by David Miller.” The message in this book is plain and simple, do what you love!  He reviews the ridiculous reasons why we choose our jobs or our career paths: our parents told us to, job security, pay, and family legacy to name a few.  He explains how our initial reason for choosing a career can infect our job satisfaction and fulfillment if we did not choose our career based on our passions.  The book provides a step by step plan to help you align your core values, strengths, and personality style to a job you love! Miller devotes several chapters to innovative and aggressive job search, interview, and follow up techniques that will secure you the job you love.

Miller’s book affirmed that I am 100% committed and passionate about wellness and helped to put my mind at ease about my decision to forgo working in acute care.  Although the book did not help resolve my frustration with corporate politics, generational conflicts, and misrepresented passion and energy, I felt liberated after reading the book.  I felt like my attitude to choose my career based on my strengths, interests, passions, and work-life balance was accepted.  Maybe my other frustrations can be resolved by reading a different book, I will keep you posted! 

Miller’s book also helped me realize how many people do not work within their passion, and I began to think about the negative ramifications that exist in our work places because people remain in jobs half heartedly.  For example, if I secured employment as a basketball team manager, my lack of enthusiasm, passion, and love for the basketball would penetrate those around me. How could I help fuel my colleague’s energy and drive if I felt miserable every day? How could I challenge my colleagues and teams if I didn’t truly care about the outcome of the basketball game? How could I possibly bring my best self to a job that I didn’t feel passionate about? 

I highly recommend the book “48 days to the work you love” I promise you will not regret the purchase! I added the link to my recommendation list on the right hand side of the page.  Happy reading! J