Job Fit Mismatch
When I was a kid I worked for my father's business. My father was a good boss, he knew how to run a business, and we're still friends today. However, I pretty much disliked every job I did. I did them because I know my father needed me to do them but I rarely enjoyed many of them.
He has managed a landfill for some time and I was employed to be a paper picker. When the wind blows, it throws up light garbage (paper, wrappers, plastic bags, etc) into the neighboring woods. I was gainfully employed to pick up said debris and return it back to the dump. I hated it. It was, from my perspective, the most boring, meaningless, and altogether excruciating job I've ever had.
It wasn't that it was physically hard. It was excruciating because it didn't fit me well. My ideas of what was meaningful didn't match the job. I suspect you've been there once or twice. Maybe you're there now. If you are, I feel and pray for you.
So, why does this happen? Why, at some point in our life, do we end up in jobs we hate?
Job Fit
Do you have a sweatshirt or pants that fit just right and make you feel comfortable to be you? Jobs should be the same: an activity where you are at your best and where you can fully utilize your gifts and talents.
As is described in What is God Given Design?, design is static. It's you from the beginning and it isn't likely to change drastically over your life. Because design is with us for the long term, we need to really understand it before understanding what job/activity/hobby/anything we ought to do. We will see our world from a very specific frame of mind and that won't change if we are working/recreating/volunteering.
Motivation
As for jobs, money and other external forces are terrible motivators. To think that you'll learn to love the high-paying job your parent(s) had because they loved it is a recipe for a very unfulfilled life. If you want to find a job you love, you'll need to tap into your intrinsic (internal) motivators.
Internal motivations stem from our design and understanding that design can help us understand our motivation. Motivation also leads us to our purpose as it answers the question, "Why do you we do what do?" Understanding your motivation and purpose will propel you when things are hard and keep you moving in the right direction.
Unique Strengths
Another reason why jobs don't fit us well is that each person has a unique set of strengths. Marcus Buckingham, of Now, Discover Your Strengths notoriety, discusses uniqueness and some of the challenges we face in the workplace (see Nine Lies about Work by Marcus Buckingham).
If we can find the right work that can harness our unique strengths, we'll be in a position that will have a wonderful byproduct of being satisfying.
Understanding our design can help us make choices about jobs and activities that can utilize our unique strengths and motivations. It will help us say no to that job that pads our wallets but crushes our soul. It will help us say yes to the job that fits us like a glove and makes the world around us a better place.
A Better World
Are you ready to be a better you by knowing who you are and doing your best work? I hope so. If you'd like more information about how to do it, please contact me. Design Coaching makes the world better by helping you be a better you!