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Mariko,
I’m so glad you’re starting to let go of the guilt you’ve felt about not being totally fulfilled in your career, despite the fact that you’re helping a lot of people. I’ve come to realize that we ALL want to help others — it’s a big source of our fulfillment — but there are endless ways that you can be helping people, and most of those ways won’t be particularly fulfilling for you. That’s OK! That’s why it’s so great that there are so many different people in this world with so many different passions. There’s a great famous quote that you may have heard that sums this up perfectly: “Vocation is the place where our deep gladness meets the world’s deep need.”
I love all of the ideas you’ve listed already! There are absolutely ways to monetize any of those ideas (although some of them you may want to do purely for fun!). I’m so glad that you’re learning to narrow down your options in a way that feels authentic, encouraging, and energizing so that you can release some of the overwhelm you’ve been feeling. That’s huge progress! I think it’s amazing how you’ve stuck with this process and really put a lot into this course, and it makes me so happy to hear how much you’re getting out of it in return.
You’re SO on the right track! š I hope you’ll come back and share more updates after you explore some of these options you’re considering!
Hi Mariko,
I’m glad to know you’re feeling better already just knowing you’re not alone! Isn’t there something so validating about reading other people’s stories and knowing you’re not the only one questioning these kinds of things about your career?
It’s totally understandable that you’re feeling frustrated by your recent diagnosis — that’s really challenging. Anyone would feel agitated by the limitations this is creating in your life, but especially a Side Hustler who loves to be active, busy, and meaningfully occupied. No wonder this this feeling so difficult for you!
What I’ve found to be true for most Side Hustlers (and you can let me know if this describes you) is that they love to be stimulated and constantly learning. So to answer your question, I would say that Side Hustlers who can’t run around like the energizer bunny could still meet their Side Hustler needs by keeping their mind challenged, stimulated, and active. Your body may need extra rest and rejuvenation right now, but that doesn’t mean your mind can’t still be learning, creating, and accomplishing things just as much as it always has! I recommend finding ways to learn, stretch your mind, and flex your creative muscle, without pushing your physical limits too far. That could look like taking a class, turning your physical therapy knowledge into a virtual program, or anything else that comes to mind for you!
Hope that helps! I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.
Hi Lynne,
It’s totally understandable that you’re frustrated by feeling stuck in your career, and it’s causing you to feel discontent and a bit lost. The great news is that you’re clearly willing to do something about it — that’s why you’re here! Signing up for a program like this that’s meant to help you get clear on your career direction is one major step toward feeling more empowered and purposeful, so congrats on taking the leap. š The further you get in the program, the more direction, self-awareness, and clarity you’ll get.
It’s totally normal that 6 months ago you got a different Passion Profile result when you took the quiz, but that you feel much more strongly about the result you got recently. I’ve found that, the more self-aware you become, the more accurate these kinds of quizzes/assessments become, so Iād say the Passion Profiles that resonates with you now are more true for you than what you believed before.
Thanks for introducing yourself, and keep us updated on your progress!
Hi Anna,
It makes sense that you might be getting these things confused (values, Core Desired Feelings, areas of life, etc.). Since I know you’re currently in our PPVE program, I’d suggest that you might want to press pause on your Short Course experience here so can first focus on the PPVE process. The PPVE is a LOT to take in already, so trying to combine it simultaneously with the Short Course is bound to feel overwhelming! You can always come back to what you’re learning here in the Short Course later on, of course.
I would recommend listening to the recording of the “PPVE Week 2 Live Hangout” (if you weren’t with us live) because we start off describing the difference between values and CDFs — I think that might clear this up for you. And remember, the terminology of all of this is WAY less important than the fact that it’s all leading you to the same place: greater awareness about who you are and what you want, both in your career and in your life in general. You can’t do any of this “wrong,” and it’s all meant to help you get out of your logical brain for a bit and access your feelings/emotions.
Hope that helps! š
Anna — I freaking love the idea of tying your values with your Core Desired Feelings (so glad you’ve worked through The Desire Map — Danielle LaPorte is brilliant), and even making it into a visual map. I’m a very visual person, so this REALLY appeals to me. I’d love to hear how it goes after you give it a try!
And thank you so incredibly much about your feedback on our courses. It means more than you know. Rachel and I don’t believe in giving people quick-fix solutions, which means our programs are intended to go DEEP into the root causes of what’s not working for you and what you really want instead. Not everyone is willing to do the deep work, but it sounds like you’re more than willing to “go there.” And the great part is, you can’t go backward in self-awareness and consciousness — so all of this personal exploration and deep questioning you’re doing now is going to serve you not just in your next job, but for the rest of your life.
Thank you SO much for sharing this. Keep us updated with your progress! š
Hey Anna! I absolutely love that you and Jane have had such similar experiences with your husbands! You may have planted a seed in my mind about creating a course about communication in relationships based on Passion Profiles … you’ve got the wheels in my head turning! š
I’m SO happy you brought up the point about not putting people in boxes (including yourself!) based on Passion Profiles — or any other type of assessment, for that matter! This is such a hugely important point, and I’m glad you’re recognizing yourself making those assumptions. That shows me just how much self-awareness you’ve already gained. Amazing!
Great question about identifying your values. I honestly don’t believe that your values will apply to only certain areas of your life. If you value Freedom, for example, you’re going to want it in ALL areas of your life, not just your job. Yes, there might be some values that you want MORE in your career than in other areas of your life (and vice versa), but they’ll all be applicable across your entire life.
As for how to define what certain values mean to you, start by asking yourself, “How does this value make me feel?” I’ll use Freedom again, as an example. If you ask yourself, “How does freedom feel to me?”, you might answer with words like “spacious,” “expansive,” “boundless,” “energized,” and “limitless.”
Hope that helps! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for such wonderful feedback, Jane! And I was so excited to see that you also joined us for the PPVE! Can’t wait to get started with that soon. š
Jane — I love your enthusiasm and your Firestarter energy. I can tell you have a ton of ideas and ambition and drive, which is fantastic. I don’t blame you for feeling so stuck and miserable in your current job — it definitely sounds like your boss is making it a place that’s not at all conducive to being a Firestarter.
While I obviously can’t know for sure which option is best for you (since everyone is so incredibly unique, and there are so many factors that go into any decision), I do have a big question for you to consider before you decide.
Since it’s clear that you’re on the path to starting your own business (and that business idea may grow/evolve over time, which is totally normal), my question for you is, what’s the best environment for you to start this business? Any of the options that you listed above will cause stress — if you quit now, you’ll feel financial stress. And if you stick around for 6 months or more, you’ll keep having all of your current stressors that come with your job. Does one of those feel more manageable than the other? Will one of those options kill or fuel your creative spirit more than the other? Is there a way of mitigating the stress for either option, like getting a part-time job or doing some consulting work if you quit, or creating some stricter boundaries around your time with your boss (even if he doesn’t like it)?
Hopefully those questions will get you thinking about your options in a slightly different way and might make your decision clearer!
Jane,
Wow, thank you SO much for sharing this! I read your entire comment out-loud to Rachel and we both thought it was amazing.
You are SO not defective or weird for being a Firestarter — it’s actually way more common than you might think! Isn’t it such a massive relief to realize that there’s not a thing in the world wrong with you, you just need to be working in a different way than other people you know?? Honestly, that’s the biggest reason why we came up with the concept of Passion Profiles in the first place — to give people total permission to be who they are, and want what they want, without feeling weird or misunderstood.
And I can’t even tell you how much I love hearing that understanding Passion Profiles has opened up a whole new world of communication and understanding with your husband! Improving communication in marriages certainly wasn’t our initial intention when creating this course, but it’s the best bonus effect I’ve heard yet for how much impact understanding Passion Profiles can have on your entire life. š
Thanks again for sharing this. It meant the world to us.
Hi Paul,
I loved reading your introduction! It means a lot to hear from you that Rachel and I stand out when it comes to how we talk about finding your passion. So thank you for that wonderful feedback. š
I’m really happy that you got so much out of the PPSC, and I think it’s so cool that you decided to print your workbook and keep it handy to remind yourself of who you are and what you value — what a great idea! I can tell that you’re totally on-board with a lot of the concepts from the PPSC, and you’ve got the right mindset to find a job that will better match up with your Thriver (and part Side Hustler) values.
As far as making your picture show up, I’m not sure why WordPress wouldn’t let you sign in — I’ve never seen that happen before. I’ll try to look into it to see what might have happened.
Thanks for such a great intro! Come back and let us know how things are going for you in the coming weeks.
Hi Shannon — Sorry for the delay in responding to this! Rachel and I have both been down with the flu this week (ugh, no fun).
I love that the PPSC has been so validating and eye-opening for you already! And it’s clear that you definitely have a strong sense of what you do/don’t want in your career (especially for being only 23 — you’re way ahead of the game!), which is awesome. The fact that you love your job at the history museum is great because it can point you in the right direction for full-time (and better paying) positions that will tie in the aspects of your current job that you love most.
I have a few ideas for how you can start finding jobs that might interest, based off of what you already know about yourself:
— Because you’re a Tribe Member and the mission and environment of the company is so important to you, try first looking into companies that you think are really awesome before searching for specific jobs. You might find that, for the right company, you’d be happy doing any number of jobs! So make a list of companies that you would LOVE to work for, and then browse their open positions.
— Instead of searching for job titles (like most of us do), try searching for key phrases that describe the parts of your current job that you most love. If you love planning events or coordinating guests, search for those kinds of phrases and see what things come up that might surprise you.
— Start taking note of people whose jobs you’re envious of. Do you have a friend, family member, or even just someone you follow on Instagram who you think, “Damn, that’s such a cool job!” whenever you see them? Whenever you feel jealousy, that’s just a sign that there’s something there you want and value, so that’s valuable info! If you’re curious, ask them a few questions about what their job is really like, or do some exploring on your own. It might just spark an idea for you.
Hope that helps!
Hey Natalie!
Glad the PPSC showed up for you at the perfect time! I love when that happens.
You hit on something really important in your comment — just because a job matches your Firestarter values doesn’t automatically make it a great job for you! You’re right, real estate has a lot of the job qualities and attributes that Firestarters are attracted to (flexibility, no cap on income potential, autonomy, etc.), but that doesn’t make it the right career path for you. If you’re feeling the itch to get into the world of coaching, I would really encourage you to follow that desire. But you don’t need to quit everything and throw yourself into it ASAP. I would start by learning as much as you can about coaching and — most importantly — experience it. If you’ve never worked with a coach before, hire one! See what it feels like on the client side of things, and you’ll get a much better idea of whether it’s something you want to pursue more intensely. (That’s exactly what I did — when I was considering becoming a coach, I decided to hire one, and it was hugely influential in my decision to move forward.) You also might want to do some informational interviews with coaches to find out more about what it’s actually like to pursue that full-time (I’m happy to be one of your guinea pigs!). And you might even start looking into coach training programs, too (I went to an awesome program called IPEC, in case you’re curious).
As for the specific questions you asked:
1) If you’re already resenting real estate, I’m thinking that’s not going to work as a longterm option for you. BUT I do think, since it does (mostly) support the lifestyle you want, it could serve as a great bridge job while you explore other things, like coaching. Think of it as the vehicle that’s taking you toward your next thing — it’s giving you the flexibility and financial support to fund your exploration of other options. Seeing it that way gives it much more of a purpose!
2) This is a really important question, but I think it might be a little too early to ask it. (I’m SO like you, always thinking 10 steps ahead, getting ahead of myself and wanting to know how it’s all going to play out way early on in the game. š ) The truth is, you MIGHT need to find another job to support you while you’re building your business, or you might not. It depends entirely on how you plan to build and structure your business, and what that business is in the first place. And those are the questions I want you to focus on first, before deciding what to do about your full-time job. Making a decision about your job will become MUCH simpler once you’re clear on what you want to do about your business.
3) If you’re a true Firestarter and just the IDEA of outsourcing your time and paycheck amount to a full-time job makes you cringe, then I’m thinking that’s only going to feel worse if you’re actually living that experience. If everything in you is pushing against something, that’s a pretty good sign that it’s just not right for you — don’t try to force it.
Hope that helps!
Hi Diane,
I’m glad you’re taking the PPSC at a pace that feels good for you and allows this content to really sink in.
As you heard us mention in the PPSC content, it’s SO normal to feel this kind of push-pull inner conflict when you have a combination of 2 Profiles (I have this same challenge myself!). From your question, it sounds to me like you already have a pretty good idea of what you want, at least for the next stage of your career. And I want to really acknowledge you for dipping your toe into the world of teaching by trying that intro class to see if you would like it — and it seems like it could be a good fit for your Tribe Member values and personal interests! So this boils down to finding the right balance so that you can have the daily Tribe Member-type job, while also pursuing your creative writing (to satisfy your creativity and your Side Hustler desire for variety).
My first recommendation for you is to read the book Big Magic by Liz Gilbert — I think you are going to LOVE her approach to creativity. One of the things she talks about is treating your art like a “love affair” (I love this concept so much!). She recommends sneaking away for stolen moments with your art, and secretly spending a lunch break on a “date” with your creativity. Cancel all of your weekend plans and stay in with your creative writing, like you would with a secret lover. It not only gets you to carve out time for your art, but it re-invigorates your passion, too.
Also, I want you to start recognizing just how much time/energy you need to devote to your creative writing side projects in order for you to feel balanced and fulfilled. The way you can tell when you’re getting out of balance is you’ll start to feel resentful of any/all things that are “stealing” your time away from your art. That resentment is simply an indicator that you’re out of balance and your “Side Hustler” values are not getting enough attention, and you can re-prioritize. Once you determine just how much creative time you need in order to avoid that resentment, you’ll be able to create a sustainable structure for yourself to balance your job and your hobbies.
I think you’re already on the right track, and now it’s just a matter of fine-tuning the balance of both of these things. You can definitely make this combination work!
