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Q and A with the Vocational Coach
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Here we will list the past 30 days worth of content for your reading joyment!
Thought for the week of February 17th:
Sometimes when pondering one's vocational passion it is easy to get lost. Lost in other's ideas, recommendations and perspectives. While this can be healthy, it can also be confusing if one doesn't listen to their own voice first. I have found that most people know in their heart what they would rather be doing. Sadly, it's the other voices which usually drown out one's own voice. If this is you, you can change this. By paying more attention to your voice above all the other noise, you will hear yourself and be in a better position to follow what you truly want in life. This is clearly a challenging time this week as most of our thoughts revolve around the possible war, poor economy, perhaps financial issues. Spend a little quiet time this week thinking through what makes you happy and what brings you that extra lift when you catch yourself dreaming. For when it comes to your vocational passion, if you can see it, you can achieve it! Have a great week and be a good friend to yourself! warmly, Craig Thought for the week of February 10th: Once you decide to follow your heart, your life becomes a magnet for possibilities. Still the possibilities presents options and choices which without action on your part remains just possibilities. If you follow your heart before your head when following your vocational passion, your mind makes better choices. Try some little steps this week Make a list of what you thought about most as a child with regards to vocation and what do you think about most now as an adult. Where are there patterns to connect? Craig (February-2003) Q and A from The Vocational CoachDear Craig; I hate my job. It's boring but I hang in there because it pays well. I am fortunate because I am young and single but it still feels like I am wasting away . Can you help? Ann Dear Ann, If it feels like you are wasting away, you are! Make a list of what's important to you right now. Be honest to yourself. If tomorrow, I gave you a free day to spend however you like, what would you do? Can you describe it? How about if I gave you a month, year, five years? Can you describe it in detail? If you can't define it, you can't possibly do it. Start with your dreams and write them down. You will surprise yourself and feel renewed energy and vocational desire Craig Dear Mr.Nathanson, How does one find their vocational passion? This sounds like a interesting topic. Jane Dear Jane, Just look inside! It's so easy to live mechanical lives which are directed by our parents, our friends, our boyfriends etc. This isn't a mystical exercise. Take a long walk in a special spot and think about what you love to do and what makes you happy. Make a list of these things to ponder and look for patterns. It's about aligning your interests and your abilities. Many of us do not have these aligned in our lives Craig Craig, At work, I need to pick 3 career tracks as part of our career development program. The problem is none of these interest me. What do I tell them? Bob Dear Bob, For now, pick any one so their checklist is complete. Then rush to think for yourself exactly what your perfect day would be like. Imagine I gave you 50 million dollars and money wasn't a problem. How would you spend your time. Whoops, forget the money, only kidding. Now, how could you still make a living at what you love to do with your perfect day? This only becomes possible when you make it so. Craig Dear Craig, My hobby is collecting art which I love but I work in car sales out of need. How can I turn my hobby into my full time work? John Dear John, First start with your imagination. Make a list of all the services you could sell around art. After each item, list a feature and a benefit. Then list the niche audience for each of these benefits. You should gather momentum after this. When in doubt, follow your heart. Craig Craig, I just decided recently to wait until I retire around 15 years from now to finally do what I love. It just too risky to take a chance now. Your thoughts? Dan Dear Dan, In the next 15 years, be careful crossing streets. It might mess up your plans. Life happens despite your best laid plans. All of us have the same 24 hours each day to work with. I believe the quality of one's life is around how we spend the time in the present. Spend yours wisely, Craig How much more time will it take me to figure out my vocational passion. Seems like another one of those touchy feely HR exercises Kathy Dear Kathy, It's all in the eyes of the beholder. Better to spend time on your life then wondering which category something falls into. How much time will it cost you with regards to the quality of your life if you don't figure out your vocational passion? Craig Dear Craig, I love your new site. Just figuring out how I can use this to help myself. Do you have tools I could use. I like to see numbers first. Ralph Dear Ralph, There are lots of useful products out there to help one better align to what they want to do in life. The downfall of many of these products are they assume the individual has done lots of thinking upfront over what they want to do. Sometimes the easiest questions are the hardest to answer. I believe we all know what we want. Focus on this first. The numbers can come later. P.S I have a few products and assessments you might find useful. Craig Craig, I am recently laid off. I am feeling happy and I am not sure why. My wife thinks I am crazy. Am I ? Sammy Dear Sammy, Sometimes and sadly too rarely, we feel happy. When we do feel happy, it seems to many like , oh well, this is nice but I am sure it will pass. Better yet, to take the time to think about why you are happy. The answers you get will lead you to the next step and the next step and the next step. That's what makes life fun! Craig Dear Craig, I commute four hours a day and every day feels the same, sad and lonely. I make 150K a year and my family likes that. The problem is they don't realize how sad I am inside. What can I do without disrupting my finances for my family? Anthony Dear Anthony, This is a very common symptom. First congratulations for admitting this since many just ignore these signals. Most heart attacks occur in middle-age men on Monday morning. There's a reason for this. Acknowledge your symptoms and do something about it. Where you start doesn't matter as long as you start. What are you good at doing and also happen to love doing? Is there someone in the world making money at this? Ponder this as a start. Craig Dear Craig, I raised my kids and my life has always taken the backstage to my husband's career. I want to enter the work world but I have no idea where to start and am not even sure if this is what I want. Do you have any suggestions? Lorrie Dear Lorrie, Start by replacing the word work with something else. My four year old asks me everyday where I am going. I got tired of saying, I was going to work. It felt like a useless label. I replaced it with, '' going out to make a difference in the world and I'll be home for dinner''. Now for me, that was so much more useful. Where can you make a difference in the world which would also make you happy. Ponder this for a while and I guarantee you'll get the circulation going! Craig
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