Tag: follow your passion

How to Identify and Follow Your Passions

Scott Asai2 Comments

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Today’s job market is more flexible than ever before, which gives you total freedom when it comes to choosing a career. With fast, low-cost air travel and the internet, location needn’t prevent you from doing what you love. Similarly, technology is allowing industries to develop at a rapid speed, which means new specialisms are constantly being introduced. 

While it’s great to have the freedom to do what you love, it can make it tricky to choose what career path to follow. If you’re having trouble deciding what you’re really passionate about, take a look at these top tips and identify what really motivates you…

Forget about money

Although your finances will inevitably have an impact on your career choices, cut money out of the equation to begin with. When you aren’t focused on the salary you can obtain, you can think more clearly about what industries excite you and what causes you feel passionate about. Almost every sector offers high-paying roles but not every job will give you the same satisfaction. Prioritize finding your passion before focusing on how much you can earn, and you’ll be on the right track. 

Explore different options

If you have varied interests, it’s always a good idea to gain as much experience as possible. If you’re torn between the financial sector and the sciences, for example, spend time investing in commercial real estate before interning at a research lab. You’ll gain experience of what different roles entail and get a real glimpse of what your day-to-day work life would feel like. 

If you’ve recently graduated from school or college, you have enough time to try out a variety of careers to see what suits you best. Make the most of the opportunity and get as much experience as possible before you decide how to spend the rest of your working life. 

Be prepared to make a change

If you don’t get the chance to try various job roles before you commit to working in a particular industry, you might quickly find that your dream job role isn’t all it was cracked up to be. If so, there’s no need to despair. Being prepared to admit that something isn’t right for you isn’t a sign of failure. 

In fact, you might be extremely successful in a particular role but still get no joy or satisfaction from your work. Being willing to start over in a new industry may take courage but you’ll be rewarded when you’re in a role you love and you’re excited to go to work every day. 

Choosing the Right Career Path

We’re asked to map out our future careers at a relatively young age, so it’s not surprising that so many people find they’re unfulfilled after they’ve spent a few years working in a full-time role. Fortunately, you’re no longer expected to remain in the same role for life. With endless possibilities, now is the time to find your passion and follow it. Do this and you’ll be far more fulfilled now and in the future.

 

Mountains To Climb To Reach The Career Of Your Dreams

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Getting the career of your dreams is not going to come easy. In fact, no matter what this is, it is going to require that you do a lot of things, overcome obstacles, and do whatever it takes to get where you want to be. All professions have their own requirements, so you need to ensure that you know what these are before you go any further. Once you have done this, you can take the advice below on how to get the career of your dreams. 

Work Hard

One of the most important things that you have got to do if you want to end up in the career of your dreams is work hard. There is nothing that is going to be more rewarding in the future and nothing that is going to fill you with more pride than getting somewhere knowing how hard you worked for it. You need to be dedicated to reaching your goal no matter what and be committed to doing whatever it takes to get there. If you aren’t, then you are not going to end up where you want, as someone else will have made this commitment.

It’s going to be a lot for you. You are going to have to give everything you have got to work your way up the ladder, but if you just keep with it, you will get there in the end. 

Education Is Key

The next thing that you are going to need is education. It is true to say that the more education you have behind you, the more money you are likely to make. Those who are highly educated are more likely to receive job promotions, job offers and bonuses than those who are not. For this reason, you need to think about getting yourself officially educated in the area that you are looking to enter. For example, if you want to do something with engineering, you can look into taking an ms in eng management to further propel your career. 

If you have the education in the field, it shows a certain level of dedication. You took the time to get this qualification, and it shows that you really are interested in what you are learning.

Follow Your Passion

Finally, if you want the career of your dreams, then you need to be passionate about the career. You aren’t going to get anywhere if you don’t have any fire or passion guiding you along the way. Without this, you are going to lose interest and try to pick up something new. Something that you should never do is go into a profession because someone else has told you to. It is a lot of work for something that you don’t even like, so don’t let yourself be trapped. Follow what you love, and it will take you where you need to be.

We hope that you have found this article helpful, and now know how to get the career of your dreams. Good luck!

The Ultimate Guide To Achieving Work Life Balance Enlightenment

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For many, the idea of having enough free time to enjoy yourself outside of work while still achieving job satisfaction and an excellent wage is the stuff of dreams. However, this scenario is possible. You simply need to know how to go about it and be proactive. Things will never fall into your lap; you need to make them happen.

In the twenty first century, our lives have become busier than ever. Your boss may become unbearable with unrealistic targets to meet, leading you to work all hours under the sun. This can lead to burnout, mental health problems and a devastating impact on your quality of life. You have to consider what is most important to you. Can you put up with the lack of social life, never seeing family and a fraught relationship at home if it means that you earn a fortune? The chances are that you yearn to be comfortable with your financial situation, have your weekends free and to enjoy quality time with family and friends. Read on to find out how you can achieve work life balance enlightenment.

What Do You Love?

When you consider morphing your professional life from being a full time employee to a self employed individual, you need to follow a passion. There has to be something in your life that you adore that will keep you motivated when you set out to launch your own startup. This could be accounting, importing ball bearings, designing and selling custom made tee shirts, or baking vegan cakes for the masses.

When you have stumbled across the thing that kick starts your mojo, you need to run with it and work at establishing yourself within your chosen sector. This will be difficult because every niche is saturated with would be entrepreneurs. However, working for yourself gives you the drive to get on social media, publicize your brand, go to trade shows and put in the hours. While it may seem that you are working long hours, they are dictated by you. If you want to take a Monday off and work Sunday instead, you can. If you are a night owl and work better from 12 until 8, do it. Having the flexibility as an entrepreneur is something you rarely see as a full time employee.

Get The Basics Right

If you have chosen to produce your very own customized jewelry aimed at 18 to 24 year olds, make sure that you have a wholesale approach to selling as well as retail. Getting your items into shops that are household names will increase exposure of your brand. This allows you some breathing space when it comes to fulfilling end user orders.

Your work life balance will improve as you are no longer sitting at a desk lining the pockets of a fat cat. Instead, you are working to earn your own living. If you can, supply some wholesale sellers via Amazon, eBay and other online shops. Be careful with choosing your stockists wisely. Some will try and devalue your items by putting their own discounts on them. This can make your items look inferior to your competitors. To combat this, look into MAP enforcement, where you can set minimum prices for your products. Find out how you can enforce MAP pricing rules by clicking here. You can send out violation messages to stockists and even prevent them from selling your items again, if they don’t heed your warnings.

Take A Breather

While the first few months of setting up your new venture may be a little more stressful than you expected, the ability to take a step back and see what you have built will emerge. Soon, you will be able to have the odd pajama day at home. You can work from your home office rather than suffer through an arduous commute. You no longer have to miss your little one’s parents evenings because you have to work late to prepare for a presentation. Your time is your own to control.

While your salary may take a hit in the first instance, consider what it is that is really important to you. As long as you have enough money to live, you can then enjoy the free time that you have, the more quality family moments that you can enjoy as well as the feeling of not having as much pressure or stress bearing down on you from an employer. You are in charge now. Follow this guide and you will achieve the ultimate work life balance enlightenment.

Don’t Follow Your Passion, Follow The Market

Scott Asai1 Comment

Follow your passion. Follow your heart. Monetize your hobby.

Trust me, I’ve heard it all.

In an ideal world, you’d find your ideal clients and sell to them like crazy, but that’s not realistic.

I’ve learned over time that is has less to do with passion, but more about identifying what’s thriving in the market.

Now thriving isn’t a code word for trendy. It means industries that have staying power.

Just like there are very few new ideas, don’t be overly concerned with competition. The same reason why gas stations and fast food establishments purposely open locations near each other proves this point.

Each industry tends to have a giant or market leader which signifies a strong want (perceived need) in society. With so many options to choose from, positioning your idea boils down to uniqueness.

In most instances it’s your brand story, featured benefit or “patented” process.

Whatever your unique selling proposition (USP) is, it’s much wiser to bring to a visible market than an invisible one.

Take for instance coaching. I’ve been doing it for 10+ years, but it’s still not part of a thriving market. Coaching is more of a “how” than a “what” therefore I’m more focused on ideas that utilize coaching in the process, but it’s not the main offering.

Coaching is an example of being in an invisible market because every time you approach a prospective customer you’re faced with a “double sell” proposal. That means the initial sell is educating what you are selling, then you have to follow up with a secondary sell to get paid. It’s not an ideal situation to put yourself through.

Market research becomes invaluable since you want to enter an area that’s already hot. No matter how great your idea is, the uphill battle of trying to educate people about what your product/service does isn’t worth your time or investment.

We’re fortunate to live in a time where information is readily accessible at our fingertips, so take advantage of it! Don’t be discouraged about developing your idea, but before moving forward make sure there’s a clear market for it’s entrance.

There’s no need to reinvent the wheel, it’s already been created.

Why Startups Are Overrated

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startup-life

Follow your passion. Chase your dreams.

Bad advice depending on your age/life stage.

The startup life is glorified from the outside, but those inside the ropes think differently.

Your corporate 9-5 job may suck the life out of you, but imagine working 40+ hours and getting paid less.

Think the grass is greener on the other side? Try turning grass over. It’s brown.

Similar to entrepreneurship and parenting, everything you see/read/learn doesn’t equate to first-hand experience.

Working for a startup is grueling. Long hours for little pay isn’t for everyone. Age/life stage should be your determining factor.

In your 20’s your career is most important, so working hard for something you believe in takes priority.

In your 30’s relationships (dating/marriage/family) are most important, so working hard to support your desired lifestyle take priority.

In your 40’s planning for retirement is most important, so working hard to secure your future takes priority.

Startups are ideal for people in their 20’s or younger. Fewer responsibilities means less concerns about work life balance.

Once you enter your 30’s boundaries become important. The difference lies in what you do after work: going to the bar with friends vs. going home to see your family.

There’s nothing wrong with chasing the American dream, but the better question to ask is: when are you chasing it?

Are You Living Passionately?

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Without Passion Life Is Nothing

Follow your passion. It’s cliché right? It’s not just following what you love that’s important, but actively experiencing it is what matters.

That statement illicits the idea that we should quit our jobs and pursue something we love. Not necessarily true. But in your personal life, what are you pursuing that is a life long love? What’s something that you’ve always loved doing and will never get tired of? A hobby is an interest you have, but a passion is something you can’t live without.

If you’re experiencing a work-life crisis maybe it’s because your professional life has eaten away at your personal life. If that’s the case, you have to take steps to get it back. In this 8 week course you’ll learn how to live passionately again because without passion, life is nothing.