Bringing your purpose to work

“Nothing will work unless you do.” —Maya Angelou

On the first Monday of the month, our country honors the achievements of American workers and the contributions they make to our communities, states, and country. I never really understood this intention until today when I looked it up. It makes the day more meaningful to me because it speaks to another level of connection we have with each other and to those who came before us. When we drive down a road, turn on our faucet, or pick up our mail, we are being touched by others and the infinite acts of labor they do at work each day. It is kind of mind-blowing when you really stop and think about it.

Our beliefs about work can be powerful influences over our choices. What we do or don’t do for work often becomes a central character in the stories of our lives. There was a time in my life I believed work and purpose were connected. This belief, I discovered, limited the many ways my purpose could be expressed in the world. And, if we attach our purpose only to work, then the day we retire is the day we see our lives as no longer purposeful.

 For most of my 20s and 30s I described my work as “soul-sucking.” My career, the one I had worked and sacrificed for and that paid me well, wasn’t making me happy. The story I told myself was that accounting for a high-tech firm wasn’t fulfilling my purpose. This thought created resistance and later my excuse for my unhappiness. I was sure it was work, not me, limiting my potential and sucking the soul out of my life. I could have spent my whole life feeling resentful about being stuck in a soulless job, or moving from one job to another, hoping to find the one that would fulfill me and never finding it. No such thing exists. Nothing outside of us can fulfill us forever or always; eventually we will experience disappointment or feel overwhelmed by something or someone we love.

So, what if we change our beliefs about work? What if work is simply another context in which we practice showing up fully in our lives and with purpose? I believe my purpose is to be loving, courageous, and wise. I can express my purpose at work by being loving, courageous, and wise, and I can express my purpose at home by being loving, courageous, and wise. There is a peace and simplicity in knowing who we are, because wherever we go, there we are.

I think meaningful work is the work we do to discover who we want to be and the effort it takes to be it. So today, let’s pause and be grateful for the labor that supports us in the world. And, if we’re unhappy in our jobs, let’s get curious about the beliefs we hold that either support or limit the full expression of our purpose at work. Let’s find new choices in how we show up. If you’ve done that and are still feeling discontent, maybe it is time to move on. Sometimes it takes entering new territory to shake us up and wake us up to our full potential.

Be well,

Xo, Sherrie

PS: Changing my life (including my career) began in 1999 in a workshop that is still offered today through The Learning Well. Check out WellBeing here. It is the most effective tool I have found for making positive changes in our lives and one of the best investments we can make in ourselves. Go for it!