This subject matter is about being human. It's imprecise, organic, full of uncertainty, dynamic and chaotic. That being said, I have successfully gone through the rabbit hole of career to McJob to hobby to Mission in life. I'm here to tell you what I saw and what I learned.
For those trying to understand if their hobby is their Mission in life, my hope is that this information will guide you on your own journey, if you choose to embark on it, that is.
For those trying to understand if their hobby is their Mission in life, my hope is that this information will guide you on your own journey, if you choose to embark on it, that is.
When you reach a certain stage of life, you start to question your priorities and your beliefs. That career you worked so hard to achieve, starts to feel like a “McJob” and you begin to crave meaningful work that will nourish your soul.
At this point, many turn to their hobbies as a source of potentially meaningful work. The problem is that the hobby is being used as a replacement for one's life's purpose or what I call the Mission in life. In this article I want to help you understand the difference between a hobby and your Mission in life.
At this point, many turn to their hobbies as a source of potentially meaningful work. The problem is that the hobby is being used as a replacement for one's life's purpose or what I call the Mission in life. In this article I want to help you understand the difference between a hobby and your Mission in life.
My Short Story
In 2013, I walked away from a six-figure career because some gravitational force was pulling on me. I allowed myself to be pulled and embarked on, what seemed at the time, as the most obvious road. To convert my photography from a hobby to a meaningful-lifestyle-income-generation business.
I made some decent progress in the first year but it always felt like I was pushing a big boulder up a hill. After a pause and deep internal search, I dropped photography as a business, and started to take action towards my Mission in life (you can read my Mission statement here).
Today, I can clearly see that photography was a hobby (still is) and not my Mission in life. What's the difference?
I made some decent progress in the first year but it always felt like I was pushing a big boulder up a hill. After a pause and deep internal search, I dropped photography as a business, and started to take action towards my Mission in life (you can read my Mission statement here).
Today, I can clearly see that photography was a hobby (still is) and not my Mission in life. What's the difference?
How To Recognize A Hobby?
A hobby,
If you decide to convert a hobby into a business, it starts to lose its appeal. You lose motivation, the fun disappears and it becomes a job. You may even end up hating it.
- makes you feel externally happy, even when just thinking about it
- makes you think "I want to do this for the rest of my life"
- ultimately, has an element of relaxation
- at some level, is an escape (you do it so that you don't do something else)
- has equivalent peers, i.e. there are other equivalent hobbies that you can pursue to accomplish the same goal
If you decide to convert a hobby into a business, it starts to lose its appeal. You lose motivation, the fun disappears and it becomes a job. You may even end up hating it.
How To Recognize Your Mission In Life?
The search for your Mission in life,
Your Mission in life has nothing to do with what you think is your Mission. It's not up to you to pick and choose. It has already been assigned to you. You just need to become aware of it and start taking action towards it.
You don't pursue your Mission in life because it makes you externally happy, you do it because you want to get it out of you. You do it because you cannot, not do it. It's the gravity that pulls you.
That being said, accomplishing your Mission in life brings you great joy and inner peace.
- is not inherently fun nor is it something you do to relax. It's not comfortable.
- creates fear in you.
- pushes you beyond your comfort zone
- makes you question your priorities
- makes you question your self-identity (who you think you are)
- nags you until you take action towards it
- makes you do non-rational things
- causes your family and friends to question you
- will have a component of service to others
- will be unique to you
Your Mission in life has nothing to do with what you think is your Mission. It's not up to you to pick and choose. It has already been assigned to you. You just need to become aware of it and start taking action towards it.
You don't pursue your Mission in life because it makes you externally happy, you do it because you want to get it out of you. You do it because you cannot, not do it. It's the gravity that pulls you.
That being said, accomplishing your Mission in life brings you great joy and inner peace.
“We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.” – Joseph
While rational thinking is king in the external hobby world, it has no power in helping you identify your Mission in life inside the crazy world of the rabbit hole.
When starting the search for your Mission in life, the most concrete thing about it is the uncertainty.
"Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly already want to become. Everything else is secondary." ~ Steve Jobs
Comfort and Happiness
People make the mistake of believing that comfort is equal to happiness, it's not. Comfort is equivalent to stagnation. Comfort is the enemy of work. Work is related to accomplishment and to your life's calling which is a meaningful endeavour.
People also confuse external happiness with living a meaningful life. Happiness is not the Holy Grail people think it is. Happiness is an artificial construct of external attachments created by EGO. Chasing happiness is not worth it.
If you chase after external Happiness, it will lead you to its twin brother Misery. You see happiness and suffering are different faces of the same coin. They are two sides of the same door.
The Holy Grail of a good life is to do meaningful work every day. Your Mission in life can accomplish that goal for you but you must be willing to do the hard work of finding it.
Refusing to find your Mission and to take actions towards it will lead to a life that seems to be lacking in someway.
People also confuse external happiness with living a meaningful life. Happiness is not the Holy Grail people think it is. Happiness is an artificial construct of external attachments created by EGO. Chasing happiness is not worth it.
If you chase after external Happiness, it will lead you to its twin brother Misery. You see happiness and suffering are different faces of the same coin. They are two sides of the same door.
The Holy Grail of a good life is to do meaningful work every day. Your Mission in life can accomplish that goal for you but you must be willing to do the hard work of finding it.
Refusing to find your Mission and to take actions towards it will lead to a life that seems to be lacking in someway.
Finding Your Mission In Life
Your Mission in life does not care where you are in life, what you are currently doing, what plans you have made for the future, what your family and friends think, what your financial status is, etc.
While the road to a hobby is often well-defined, there's a fuzziness about the road to your Mission in life. You need to learn to become comfortable with this fuzziness until you find your Mission. It takes courage. You must let go of the attachments you have created to some artificial belief of who you think you are.
When you finally find your Mission in life, it will feel like meeting an old, dear friend with no judgment, and that friend has always been you. It's very liberating.
So in the end, your Mission in life is a calling but it's also a choice. You must decide to either accept the call or ignore it.
Find Your Purpose And Mission In Life
While the road to a hobby is often well-defined, there's a fuzziness about the road to your Mission in life. You need to learn to become comfortable with this fuzziness until you find your Mission. It takes courage. You must let go of the attachments you have created to some artificial belief of who you think you are.
When you finally find your Mission in life, it will feel like meeting an old, dear friend with no judgment, and that friend has always been you. It's very liberating.
So in the end, your Mission in life is a calling but it's also a choice. You must decide to either accept the call or ignore it.
Find Your Purpose And Mission In Life
"You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking back. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something; your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever, because believing that the dots will connect down the road, will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path. That will make all the difference." ~ Steve Jobs