Career Compass: Follow Your Passion

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As a retired "jarhead, I offer my experiences and advice to help you improve your career. It's my firm belief that you should follow your passions instead of staying in a job that brings you no satisfaction.

For instance, I once met a waiter who dreamt of becoming an electrician but continued to work as a waiter out of convenience and fear of change. This is a perfect example of why setting goals and making actionable plans for achieving your dream career is important.

My mission is to guide individuals in finding a career that fits their skills and life aspirations. My book, "Find a Job That Fits Your Life," is a comprehensive guide designed for those unsure about their career path and looking for direction. Together, we can turn your dreams into reality by taking decisive steps towards a fulfilling career.

As someone who has navigated the often complex world of career transitions, I can assure you that the journey to your dream job is both possible and rewarding. Here are some key points to keep in mind on your quest:

• Identify Your Passion: Reflect on what genuinely excites you. What activities or topics do you find yourself drawn to, even in your leisure time?
• Assess Your Skills: Take an inventory of your strengths and experiences. Consider how these can be transferred or adapted to a new field.
• Set Clear Goals: Define what success looks like for you. Establish both short-term and long-term goals to help guide your efforts.
• Create a Plan: Outline the steps necessary to achieve your goals. This could include further education, networking, or gaining relevant experience.
• Take Action: Start implementing your plan with confidence. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes; it's part of the learning process.
• Seek Support: Surround yourself with a supportive network of friends, family, and mentors who can provide guidance and encouragement.
• Be Persistent: Stay committed to your goals, even when faced with obstacles. Remember that change takes time and perseverance.

By following these principles, you can steer your career in a direction that aligns with your aspirations. My book, "Find a Job That Fits Your Life," offers additional insights and tools to support you on this journey.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hi folks.
Well, the old jarhead is backwith career advice that is
guaranteed to help you and, nomatter what you're doing, if you
follow what I tell you, you'regoing to have a better career.
Okay, so today we're going toramble on about something that

(00:22):
I've observed over the lastcouple years of doing career
coaching, and I'll start with alittle story that is
representative of it.
So, talking with a waiter theother day and he said he was
looking at moving on from therestaurant that he he was

(00:45):
working on and he was thinkingof applying to some other
restaurants, and I said, oh,that's, that's great.
And, uh, you really like beinga waiter?
And he says, no, no, not at all.
What I really want to get intois, um, become an electrician,
get into the trades.
And I said, okay, so so why areyou applying for another waiter

(01:09):
job and not looking at doingsomething in the field you want
to go into, like get anapprenticeship or do something
along those lines?
And I think his response wasyou know, I don't know, it's
just kind of easier.
I know, I know how to be awaiter and I've got a pretty
good resume and I can get a jobthat pays okay.

(01:32):
So the point of the matter is,if you keep doing that, right,
you just keep going on andsaying, look, I'm just going to
apply for another waiterposition and keep going.
Eventually you're going to getto this point where you go.
What am I doing?
You know, I'm now kind of inthe middle age and I'm still
waiting on tables and got aroommate here that I'm living

(01:53):
with.
That I don't really like andyou know, and I really wanted to
get into that being anelectrician, but now it's a
little hard to do that.
Now it's a little moredifficult because I'm older and
whatnot.
So the point of the matter hereis that if there's something
that you really want to do, butyou're doing something else and

(02:14):
you continue to do it, youcontinue to go down that path,
you continue to work in a fieldthat you really don't want to
work in.
You got to ask yourself why.
And so, if you find yourself inthat position, what's the first
thing to do?
Well, the first thing to do andthis gets back to last week's
podcast is set a goal, right.

(02:35):
What are you aiming for?
What's your vision?
Do you want to be anelectrician or a ballet dancer
or anything along those lines.
Make sure you know and lay outa plan.
Sure, maybe you'll continuewaiting tables while you execute
that plan.
Contact people, reach out totrade organizations or unions

(02:56):
and things like that.
But my point here is dosomething right.
Don't keep going down the pathof where you are if you truly
don't want to be on that path.
A lot of people do that andsometimes they find themselves
older and they've got a mortgageor they have something else and
it's a little more difficultfor them to move back in their

(03:19):
professional sense and to have alower paycheck, if you will.
So Think about that, if thisfits you, think about this
position where you are whatyou're doing and you don't want
to get to that point where it'stoo hard.
Your bills, your things likethat that I just mentioned, are

(03:41):
too high for you to start overagain.
Start over again when you canNow.
There'll be times in your lifeand I talk about military
retirement People retire fromthe military when they're
relatively young, okay, and theycan do other things, and it may
be time for a sea change.
This is a great thing.
Don't just go into being adefense consultant.
If you really wanted to dosomething else right, now's the

(04:04):
time.
You have a retirement check,you can do that.
So, anyhow, just rambling aroundhere a little bit and let me
know what you think.
But if you find, if this is youright, if this is you, you're
doing something you don't wantto do and you keep doing it,
stop, you know, write down whatit is you want to do, make a

(04:26):
plan and start executing thatplan.
Well, and if you're not surewhat you want to do, what sort
of job fits your life?
Well, I got a great book, okay,it's called find a job that
fits your life.
It's on Amazon, a number of thebookstores.
You can order it online andit'll really help you.
And so that's about all therambling I got time for today.

(04:49):
So thanks for listening.
Bye, thank you, thank you.