What do I want to be when I grow up?

So many of my clients (of all ages) ask this question. And it is a good question. In some ways, I hope it’s one I never stop asking. It’s a question filled with hope and possibility. It speaks of dreams.

And, as we know, we don’t so much keep dreams alive as dreams keep us alive!

Asking this question doesn’t necessarily mean a career change. It can have as much to do with how we want to be in this world as it does with what vocation or career we want. It’s a question that can work at several levels.

What’s your purpose?
A few years ago, after I lost a job in a workplace where I’d been for 22 years, I had many questions: Who am I now? What’s my purpose? What do I want to be when I grow up? And more.

The one about purpose felt foundational to me, so I spent a lot of time with that. I looked back to childhood to see what I had enjoyed then. I asked others who knew me what they saw in me. I reflected on jobs I’d held, whether paid or volunteer, and what I had enjoyed about those things. I began to see a theme—I was an encourager. I loved mentoring, affirming, encouraging, helping others to reach their highest potential. I had done that in so many ways through the years, in my journalism career, in management positions, in volunteer activities and with my children and grandchildren. So my work as a life coach fit perfectly!

Author Dawna Markova says in I Will Not Die An Unlived Life that “there’s no such thing as finding one’s purpose. It’s about creating the conditions, for six months or six minutes, where your purpose can find you.” She adds, “It’s not about asking what is the meaning of life, but rather asking what your life means.”

Create some space today so your purpose can find you! And if you already know it, celebrate that. Renew your commitment to living it out. Feel the passion. Feel the energy when you are fulfilling your purpose! And, if you’re willing, please share with us your journey to find it; do so in the comment box below.