How did you all find your calling and what you wanted to do?

musicismylife78

I did this thread about 4 years ago. Was wondering the same type of stuff though. Its been on my mind for years, im 27, and its something that has consumed my thoughts my entire 20's.

How did you find your calling/purpose in life? Did you always know what you wanted to do in life? Were you a 5 year old and knew you wanted to be a policeman and you ended up a policeman? Did it take years and years for you to find what you wanted to do in life? Are you a 30/30/50 year old and still dont know what you want to do in life? Was the process hard or easy? Did it come immediately, say for instance you enrolled in a class in baking, and knew from the first moment you wanted to be a baker? Or did it come gradually, trying out new things, which leads you to new things etc...? What was the moment of clarity like? a lightning bolt? have you felt something was your calling then decided it wasnt? Was your twenties fun for you, or was it a time of crises and growing pains?

In my own personal life, without going into details, my twenties have been rough. I feel i have a good idea of what my calling is, but exactly how to translate that into an income is a problem. And of course the economy makes it doubly hard. I find self discovery exhilerating yet painful.

Im just curious to hear others experiences.

81

i wanted to have a decent income so i went to college and then went where the wind blew me post college so far so good.

unlost dogs

I just kept my mind open to new possibilities. And when I get bored, I move on... to a new position, a new department, a new employer or a completely new career.

I get bored every three years, like clockwork.

JOEJOEJOE

81 wrote:

i wanted to have a decent income so i went to college and then went where the wind blew me post college so far so good.

Just who is this "the wind" person, and where do I find her?

conman

i made a lot of mistakes and learned from them

stargirl69

JOEJOEJOE wrote:

81 wrote:

i wanted to have a decent income so i went to college and then went where the wind blew me post college so far so good.

Just who is this "the wind" person, and where do I find her?

unlost dogs wrote:

I just kept my mind open to new possibilities. And when I get bored, I move on... to a new position, a new department, a new employer or a completely new career.

I get bored every three years, like clockwork.

I have been the same,I think people should move jobs every 3 to 5 years,it keeps you fresh and open to opportunities.

dougfloyd

Hmmm, that's a tough one, not sure I really have a calling. I was always interested in technology & video games, got a computer for christmas in 2nd grade. Graduated high school in '97 and IT was a popular job market so I majored in computer technology. It's provided stable employment and a good income but not sure it's my "calling" or anything. I don't get out of bed every morning thinking "I can't wait to fix somebody's computer problems today"

Good luck in your search though, everybody takes a different path, there's not 1 right way to decide what you want to do.

Mookie Blaylock77

unlost dogs wrote:

I just kept my mind open to new possibilities. And when I get bored, I move on... to a new position, a new department, a new employer or a completely new career.

I get bored every three years, like clockwork.

Mmmmm yaaaaa :crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

Porchsitter

I love what I do, but I wouldn't say it was a "calling" as much as it was an escape from retail hell. After 10 years of working retail, I decided it was time for me to finally move on. Went to school for journalism, ended up with a job with a satellite company, and have loved it ever since.

JOEJOEJOE

I was interested in the music business ever since my teenage years. I never thought I was polished or slick enough to work in that field (put it on too high of a pedestal). Eventually, I became a CPA, and was lucky enough to get a job at a firm that handled music clients.

It often takes time to hear your calling, and the road may be full of both detours and shortcuts. Sometimes you may find an open lane!

comebackgirl

I didn't really figure out exactly what I wanted to do until after I finished undergrad. I started taking classes I was interested in, rather than what I thought would make me the most money and switched majors from what I thought I was supposed to do to what I actually wanted to do. After graduation I called to volunteer at a place where I always wanted to help. They offered me a job and my path kind of grew from there.

Princess Bulldozer

Ok...so I am nearly 26. I am a 3rd year chemistry student.

When I was little I wanted to be police officer. High school I wanted to drive those massive trucks in the mines.
I dropped out of high school and took photos of bands. Got bored of that, got an entry level job in accounts, did that. Quit, went to study events management, dropped out. Got another job in accounts. Quit. Started studying childcare and worked in childcare. Dropped out and quit.

Got a job in insurance full time, moved citys, still in same company. Knew I didn't want to do that for the rest of my life. Started looking at degrees. Didn't want to do business, didn't want to do law, didn't want to do much.
Thought maybe education, but my sister is a teacher and I didn't think I would really like it. That left science.

Moved citys again, went part time, started studying science full time. Had to choose a major, chose Chemistry.
Didn't think I would enjoy Physics or Biology or Ecology or Geology. Chemistry was the other option.

Love it, wouldn't change it for the world.

I study full time, work three jobs part time, including being a chemistry research assistant.

Still don't know what I will do when I graduate. Maybe do post-grad study and finally get my PhD.
Be a researcher.

Not sure.

POINT I AM TRYING TO MAKE:
1. You probably know what you don't want to do.
2. Try things, if you don't like it move on.
3. Don't stress. Everything works out in the end.
4. Do what you love.

Jamminonthe1

From an early age the only thing I truly enjoyed and excelled at in school was writing, so I became a journalist. Been at the same small paper for over a decade, have lots of responsibility there, make a decent enough salary and have total flexibility to work from home and be there with my two young kids.

Can you tell us what you'd like to do and maybe we can help come up with some ideas?

drinkbigredinstead

I'm still waiting for my calling, I'm 36. Until I do find my calling or it finds me I work at a bank. I have a few people I tell what to do and more than a few people telling me what to do. However it pays the bills and then some (ahem PJ) so I can't complain.

PJDRUMMERFAN

I have recently graduated from college. I majored in music business and music, but I currently find myself working retail. Four years ago I would not have pictured myself where I am now but I am thankful to have a job doing anything right now. Though it may not be what I want to be doing, what's the rush? I am twenty three years old and I have recently returned from a trip across the country to California. I feel one should live in the moment and make decisions based on the present not on the future. I realize I may sound young and naive, but I have an hazy sense of certainty that one day I will be what I have always wanted to be. :?: :?: :?:

Cliffy6745

Growing up, all I wanted to do was work in professional sports. I did everything I could to get there. Interned at college athletic departments, interned with semi-pro soccer teams, basically anything that gave me any type of in. Got a "great" job working for the 76ers and Flyers out of college (started 4 days after my graduation), a job lots of people dream of. Shortly saw absolutely zero career growth. Fun year and I wouldn't trade the experience for anything but it's definitely much better from the outside.

Now in marketing. Do I love it? Absolutely not. But I work with really smart people on some very well known marketing campaigns and work in an environment where I can wear jeans, shorts or flip flops to work and come and go as I please. For being in my late 20's, I can't really complain. That said, I'd love to do something worth while. I come from a family of academics, so I'd love to eventually go back to school and teach business/marketing or work in non-profit in the inner city (that obviously doesn't pay bills).

Not exactly sure what my point is. I guess, it's that what you always wanted to do is not necessarily realistic or what you should do (as horrible as that sounds). It can be a bit of a let down. Find something you like that is related to what you do. You're an artist, there are a lot of opportunities out there for people with writing/creative skills. Will it be as satisfying as what you want to do? Absolutely not, but it will pay the bills and will utilize your skills and hopefully give you enough free time to have a life outside of work and hopefully fulfill some of your aspirations. (Edit: This sounds cold. Not saying give up one your dreams or whatever, just be realistic about it and understand that your dream job may not necessarily be a dream job)

Slightly intoxicated, hope this makes sense.

number1PJfan

I teach school for a living. I would like to think I do a good job at it as I put my heart and soul into it. But I don't believe it is my calling. I have done it for 14 years now but I see something more in my future. I do enjoy it, but I don't love it.

Better Dan

I'm 27 also and have been working at my professional job for almost 6 years now. Like 81, I kind've just went with the flow in college and ended up majoring in Accounting. After working for 6 years, I can say that I really dislike my job and I have no idea what my calling is, but I know it isn't what I'm doing now. Hard to leave due to pay and flexible vacation time/work schedules, but I can't see myself doing this for the next 30 years. It's definitely not too late to go back to school though, so I've considered that in an effort to find my true calling