Day 44

I am working full-time right now, and I hate it. It has made me think about all the advice I have read or heard about when it comes to work or a career. I know I have passed on these words of wisdom to my son, but it seems like I haven’t taken my own advice or the advice of many mentors.

Choose something that you love to do.
Find something that you love to do. Ideally, whatever you choose to do, you should be doing it without regard for money. I know my bills still have to be paid, like I am sure yours do, but trust me, if you dig in and do well, doing what you truly like to do, the money will come. However, if money is your primary motivation (which at times can be very motivating) you have two strikes against you even before you start: If money your will tend to make short-sighted decisions, and make mistakes trying to save the extra dollar or spending it foolishly. People who work just for the money tend not to work as hard as those who love what they do. They end up bored, uninspired, just punching the clock to make ends meet. A working zombie.

Don’t let crowded markets frighten you.
I’ve read that people say that “I love this idea, but the market is already over crowded.” In response to that I say “there is always room in any industry or business or market for someone to truly make a difference.” And I can tell you that someone who loves what they are doing often makes a definite difference. People who make these differences tend to stand out from the crowd – they are more passionate, more creative, and have a drive that fuels them to accomplish what they want to accomplish.

When you love something…
My father used to tell me “When you love something, all its secrets will be revealed to you in time.” There is so much truth to this statement. You have to be prepared to listen and respond gently at times, and make your decisions based on income or short term goals. People who are motivated by money never have the time or patience to learn these subtleties.

You have to love what you are doing.
If you decide on a business and you love what you’re doing, there is an excellent chance that you WILL find a way to be different, to succeed and reach your goals. Time will pass very quickly. Hours and minutes will pass by, it rare that when I am blogging, researching or working on websites that I stare at the clock watching the second hand slowly tick off the seconds. I can sit down and lose hours of my day doing this. You, like me will tend to work hard enough so one day, your business will tell you the secrets you need to know that will set you apart from the crowd, and then the money will flow.

So there you have it. Find something you love to do, and figure out a way to get paid doing it. There’s also one more reason why you should do what you love. Life’s way too short. Why spend your time at something that isn’t fun? Sometimes a paycheck just isn’t worth it. Now if I just listen hard enough, I will hear the secrets I need to know to stop punching the clock and start doing what I love to do.