Convinced You Have More In The Tank?

Change can often be a challenge, and when you’re considering taking your life in a new direction, it’s important to be asking yourself the right questions. David Zahn can help you "look behind the curtain" to get insights and ideas about what future pursuit could be right for you.

Perhaps you spent yet another sleepless night assessing where you are professionally, and taken an inventory of your skills.  And...you're far from excited. Perhaps you fall into one of these categories:

1. You have lately been thinking about being your own boss and doing business in the way that you believe it should be done

2. You have so much MORE to offer, but no one seems to care
3. You are feeling stuck, lost or overwhelmed at work and not being recognized for your experience and expertise
4. You are still in the same job year after year, but you dread having to go into work to the soul-crushing, conflict-laden, political minefield, etc. that is your workplace.
5. Recently retired and feeling uneasy about what to do next. You have experience, skills, and energy all in abundance Yet, you do not know what you will do.

You just wish you could figure out how to either achieve for the first time, or resurrect that elusive feeling you once had for putting your time and expertise into doing something that truly felt satisfying for you and was rewarding in ways beyond the pay or salary you received.  What you seek is that certain something that compels you to get out of bed in the morning excited to greet the day. A reason for being that is your own and personal, and not dictated to you by others (family, boss, friends, etc.) telling you what you SHOULD do or feel.

What you are experiencing is the pursuit of living a life with a purpose.  In a professional context, it can be broken down into:

1. What do you love?

2. What are you good at?

3. What does the world need?

4. What can you be paid for?

Notice that this is a concept very much grounded in reality.  Definitively, it looks to combine the very real and practical concerns we all have of aligning one’s skills and preferences with the needs of the market, and identifying a way to make a living while doing it.

Looking at the four (4) elements above, our challenge is to ensure they are aligned.  If a person is doing what they love and are good at; but are unable to be compensated for it satisfactorily, they may experience passion and they even have moments of delight.  However; they will not accumulate wealth and may feel a sense of uselessness.  Looking at it differently, a common feeling among business professionals is that they may be considered good or competent at a particular job or skill, and they do receive a paycheck for their efforts (so, they SHOULD be satisfied by conventional measures!). Yet, even though they are comfortable, they still feel a certain emptiness or lack of fulfillment.

Core to the successful achievement of your professional success is the confluence of all four factors in one pursuit.  It is following your heart to do what feels good and is rewarding AND recognizing that it must also provide value to others so that it meets the need of customers/the market, while also providing income.