Whether it's about becoming a doctor or a musician, we all strive to do something we love. Not considering the reality of things, we might also set the goals too high, totally scavenging the awareness about the difficulties of achieving those goals.
While many people are happy with the simplicity of finding a job they don't like, they also tend to forget the significance of finding our passion.
Finding your passion is not easy – I went on a lifelong ride in the train of hobbies to find writing and singing my most immense satisfaction. And yet, I know there will be times I will doubt those career orientations as well.
Finding your passion is crucial, not only for doing the thing you love but also when it comes to speaking about professional success, personal well-being, and overall quality of life.
The Importance of Self–Inspection
Self-inspection is the cornerstone of choosing a person's passion. While deep introspection unveils your desires, values, and strengths, it's also a crucial step in achieving full-on professional success.
Pursuing a passion can also be daunting, creating a psychological environment where we see this process as a vague endeavor.
Self-inspection helps you understand a person's core talent or ability, correctly leading to a fulfilling and purpose-driven career.
Another effect of self-inspection is the certainty of clarity that carefully guides us amidst life's uncertainties. It also empowers decision-making, fostering resilience and commitment to our paths.
Identifying Strengths and Weaknesses
Have you ever encountered someone who claims to have no weaknesses, who's perfect in every way? Well, we all have.
Egocentrism, a form of cognitive bias or mindset, is so typical today that it's sometimes hard to distance reality from fiction.
Here are the primary keys on how to take this critical step towards your personal and professional success:
- Self-Awareness
Reflect on your experiences, both present and past. Ask yourself what activities come naturally to you but also what you struggle with, and remember – total honesty is essential.
- Seek External Feedback
Humans must form relationships to function as a socially dependent species – use that to your advantage. Ask family, friends, and colleagues for their input. Sometimes, we overlook the strengths and weaknesses that others can see.
- Consider Using Self-Assessment Tools
Since we live in an age full of opportunities everywhere, use tools for self-assessment to their maximum! Tools like SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) can supply a concise, structured framework for evaluation.
Exploring New Activities
As we mentally evolve, our preferences change over time. Sometimes, it's so drastic that when we look at ourselves from a few years ago, we do not recognize us.
Most of the time, that change is for good. I believe that everything happens for a reason. Therefore, please find something you love doing, but if you see something you are awful at, remember it’s all the process of learning– just as we mentioned when speaking about self-inspection.
The most probable cause for not exploring and expanding our interests is our comfort zone – the invisible brick wall between the usual and unusual.
As an ex-comfort zone struggler, I will share with you a few tips that helped me break that invisible wall.
- Acknowledge Your Comfort Zone
It is always helpful to explore your territory; therefore, recognize what is a comfort zone for you, and new, better experiences often lie outside of it.
- Start Small
If you're a high achiever like me, this will most likely set you aside for a bit. What's important is to continually motivate and remind yourself about who you want to become.
Take small steps, gradually increasing the challenge that linearly follows you and your ability to get comfortable.
- Embrace Fear and Uncertainty
Whether in the dark, new territory, or even just trying to draw for the first time, being scared is okay. Embracing that fear helps you realize its importance in the whole learning process, not only in your comfort zone but also in life.
- Celebrate Progress
Connecting to our “Start Small” advice, celebrate every success you obtain, no matter how small. This effect is a confidence boost, which we all need sometimes.
- Stay Committed
Finally, you must know consistency is key! It might not be easy because you will face many difficulties, but always keep your head up and be consistent!
As we approach this article's end, I must tell you a few things. Remember that failing, falling, trying, and crying is okay. Remember that it's all a process of learning and real self-work.
Reading this article to this point shows that you have what it takes to become successful, but there's still a long way to go! Please don't wait for Monday or 5 pm sharp to start your career-orienting journey, do it now!
It's never too early or too late.
An article was prepared and written by Balša Kićović, editor of the Redaction