Just because you’re good at something doesn’t necessarily mean that’s a message for you to take that on as a career or a calling. People get confused because they are good at this thing or that and therefore pursue it but find it unfulfilling or even soul killing. What’s up with that? Or they are good at a multitude of things and can’t seem to figure out which one to pursue. As if there can be only one, right?
I’m good at a great many things that I don’t pursue as a career. I’m a very fast typist, great at all things office managerial, have proven time and again to be a fantastic personal assistant, I’m no slouch in the computer industry although I struggle a bit on the IT side of things and decidedly do not code! I’m pretty good as a manager, too. None of which means that I’m called to be any of those things or do any of those things as a profession, although I have used all of them heavily in my time and they all serve me well as a writer and a business owner. I have noticed that a number of my clients do or have supported themselves as accountants or have taken customer facing jobs to make ends meet. Being good at these things doesn’t mean that they are a calling and hating them doesn’t mean that they are being punished. Having skills isn’t the message. Being good at something isn’t a note from the Universe, necessarily.
Loving doing something is usually the message. It’s not the skill level but the thousands of hours that you put into doing it even though you might not make a dime from it. It’s the fact that you can’t stop doing it, thinking about it, finding joy in it. Fascinations with airplanes, with drawing, with crafting, with cars and driving, with disc golf or martial arts or pool or dancing or one particular subject that you research until you are the expert…these things… the things which feed your soul and make your heart sing, these may be and probably are your calling. That calling might not be about being a professional this or that, they may be a means to an end, a skill that helps you do or become what is on your path. Being good at sewing may lead you into clothing design where you can express your passion and make people feel good about themselves. Martial arts might be the physical expression of your personality and your spirituality which leads you to an entire way of life which you share with others. Dancing may lead you to a community which opens up opportunities for you to share your vision and expression with others and brings jobs and work that you had never even thought of.
Being good at something isn’t as important as loving something. When you love something, you pursue it, when it becomes part of who you are, then let others see that and know that. Let the world know it’s who you are. That’s where the rubber meets the road, where the calling starts. Where you intersect with the world in joy and joyful doing, that’s your path.
