How to know what you're passionate about for your career

I swear every high school careers advisor's favourite catchphrase is ✨ follow your passion ✨ which sounds like good advice on the surface, but I've never been a huge fan.

Why?

Following your passion is past focused - there are probably lots of things you would be passionate about but you just haven't tried them yet! Plus, most of the professions that will exist in 10 years' time don't even exist today, so the career path you might be most passionate about may not even be on your radar until the year 2030 (🤯🤯 I seriously feel like 2010 was 3 years ago).

Don't get me wrong, knowing your passions is still an important piece of your career puzzle, but let's look at them with a different lens 🧐

Your passion isn't a direct link to a job title...

• Being passionate about animals doesn't mean you should become a vet.
• Being passionate about helping people doesn't mean you should become a doctor.
• Being passionate about storytelling doesn't mean you should become an author.

Your passions merely serve as extra clues to understand who you are, what energises you, and what environment you would be most happy in. They do not define you. They should be used in conjunction with more stable factors like your strengths and core values in order to influence your career path.

So, how do you know what you're passionate about so you can slot another piece into that complex career puzzle?

Just keep on reading, or check out the YouTube video below!

How to determine your passions for career alignment

Journaling

I know I know, almost every self-improvement hack on the internet involves some type of journaling, but that's because it works!

Journal prompts:

• What specific activities have you done in a past or current job that you really enjoy or find engaging? What tasks did you dislike?
• What can you talk about for hours?
• Had to create a YT or podcast, what would your first 3 eps be about?
• When was the last time you were in flow?

Once you start noticing some common themes, you can start making targeted career moves that ensure you're doing more and more of these things, so you can build a career full of passion and purpose! 

Visualise your dream work day

And, you guessed it, write it all out in that journal 😉 Trust me, we're manifesting right now! 

In your dream work day...

• Do you start early and leave early?
• Do you have lots of meetings or work mostly alone?
• What kind of tasks are you working on? Writing? Presenting? Analysing data?

Create a second column to unpack why these things feel good for you. Keep asking yourself the question WHY until you get to the root of your passions and drivers.

Taking myself, for example, my dream day at work would always include at least 3 calls with coaching clients.

Why?

Because I love connecting to people one on one.

Why?

I love conversations that come from getting deep with someone. In our busy lives, we don’t take the time to stop and have these convos.

Why?

I get a genuine kick out of seeing people have an AHA moment and getting excited about the future.

Why?

I want people to have a deep sense of career satisfaction, it’s a huge part of our lives.

Why?

According to the Gallup strengths diagnostic, my number one strength is empathy. I feel happy when other people are happy, and I enjoy improving the lives of others!

For some people, their passions are a no-brainer, for others, it can take a little more nurturing to unpack, and if that's you that's totally okay! Your passions aren't (and shouldn't be) the single most defining part of your career path. They're not going to make or break your potential for success, but they are going to provide some key info on what types of things to look for in that unicorn role.

Until next time, stay badass,

Rosie ⚡️

P.S. Want to dive deeper into figuring out your strengths, passions, and what makes you tick career-wise? Download my Career Happiness Playbook today!