How to never work in life again by creating your own passion?

"You can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending. "

– CS Lewis

What is your dream job?

What are you passionate about?

How close are you to being passionate about your work?

If I had to go back in time and change one thing, what job would I pick?

That is the one question that has been nagging me as I write these words right now.

When I was younger, I remember thinking that I wanted to be a CEO - Chief Executive Officer when I was younger.?

Yes, I did not formulate that way as a 10 years old boy. But it would be it.

Today, if I were to go back in time, I would tell my 10 years old self to embrace a career as an artist, specifically to be an actor or a comedian.

I always loved watching movies when I was young. It was just that I never imagined that I could be an artist or an actor.

My environment wanted me to be a doctor, an astronaut, or even work in the private sector, especially in foreign companies or NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations). That was what success looks like to the people around me.

As of today, I am still dreaming of finding my passion. Because the following quote has haunted me:

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”?

– Confucius

When I see all the people I admire today, some are artists like comedians, musicians, actors, directors, or filmmakers.

Don’t get me wrong. It is not about fame. It is more about the way they tell stories that change my world.?

And I would love to be paid to do that. Yes, I know I could leave my job and start a new journey. I am just 41 years old as I am writing this article.

I believe that Morgan Freeman made it to Hollywood late in his 50s. I know it is possible.

The questions I am asking are the following:?

What if I was wrong about finding my passion??

What if I got it all wrong?

What if it is not about finding and more about creating?

Let me explain.

I feel like my 9 to 5 job is not my passion job, as I am reflecting on it today. And deep down, I keep beating myself up to find that passion of mine so that I will never have to work again in my life.

In his book, SO GOOD THEY CAN'T IGNORE YOU, Cal Newport might have the answer I have been looking for.?

For him, passion for the work we are doing is rooted in the 3 following characteristics:

• Creativity,
• Control,
• Impact.

He argues that we have to hit those 3 areas to find passion in our current job.

Indeed we cannot all become our dream jobs. If that were the case, the current generation would only be “influencers,” “Tik Tokers,” and “Gamers.”

We will miss first responders, nurses, and the workforce at restaurants. We have seen how those previous jobs and many others have helped us get through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Let's see how we can make our 9 to 5 job our passion. Yes, miracles exist. Hold on tight with your faith in humanity or restore it.

CREATIVITY - We all strive for the freedom to have some moments in our daily jobs where we can be creative.

We all can see the value we can bring to the table if, only if, we were given the space to unleash our creativity.

For me, creativity is part of my Ten values in life. So, yes, I am an aerospace engineer, working in one of the two companies in the world which are the big players in that space.

One of the most challenging tests for my creativity was when I was working in Customer Support.

When the answer you give to customers is applied to an aircraft you might take one day, you want to be in the deterministic part of life, not the creative one.

I often ask myself if I could ever express my creativity while staying in the aerospace industry.?

Maybe the question is not when. I should be asking myself how I can ring creativity to my work and make sure to move to positions where my creativity is more valued than my technicity.

CONTROL - An artist has, to some degree, the freedom to craft their art the way they envision it. Having control over our work is a way to reclaim the freedom of our most valuable asset: our time.

We have seen the rise of working from home and a significant shift in control. If you want to see those who have lost control and the winners, just ask around you.

The answer is that most ground-level employees have gained back control of their time and feel in control of how they should deliver.?

Being in our pajamas, lost in the wilderness where we only need Wi-Fi, and close to our loved ones, we all have been working remotely and saw some benefits of taking control.

The first-line managers, and middle management in big corporations, are the ones who lose control when working from home.

I enjoy working from home. I don’t have to take a bath every day. I can stay in pajamas the whole day. I don’t feel the stress of traffic jams. I am saving on my gasoline.

In that area, I am bringing more control into my job. Now the challenge is to make sure to keep it that way.?

IMPACT - Self-actualization is high in the pyramid of needs from Maslow. We all question the value our daily work is bringing to our company.

We are not all closer to the final product or service that is delivered to our end customers.?

We might just be the one person designing the bolt that stitches the wings to the fuselage of an aircraft.

In a world where we compete with the rest of the universe, we question the meaning and impact of our work.

In big corporations, everything is written, captured, and secured via processes, methods, and tools in the cloud.

Many jobs today will be done in the future better and faster by machines thanks to Artificial Intelligence and the leap of quantum computing.

Working in a big corporation, I often ask myself the impact I have in the greater scheme of things.?

Bringing more impact to my work is one of my biggest challenges as I am stepping into the second phase of my work experience.

I have understood that my passionate job is not to be found. The same can be said about searching for the meaning of life.

Like my meaning in life, I need to create a passion within my job. It is the only sustainable way for humanity at scale.?

What if we all get our passion job and suck at it??

That would not be something pretty to see and experience.

As we advance in our careers, we should find ways to have more room for our creativity, get more control and find ways to amplify the impact of our work.

Only then can we reap the fruit of the seed of our passion in our work.

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You can read my previous article on Five key elements for living a great life: a life worth remembering.

Photo by?Giu Vicente?on?Unsplash