What exactly is a dream job? A dream job is when you’re able to combine your interests and values with your professional abilities. It’s a career that fulfills you by giving you the opportunity to make an impact. It’s the kind of job that makes you WANT to go to work.
Dream careers aren’t fairytales. You can be far and beyond happy in your career. It’s only a matter of identifying what is missing and doing what it takes to fulfill those professional needs.
How does your current job align with your core values?
People who don’t enjoy their jobs are sometimes unhappy with them because they don’t align with their core values. Say for instance you work as a telemarketer for a credit card company, but don’t feel that you’re making a positive impact by getting people who are already struggling with debt to sign up for more of it. You can’t possibly love what you do if you feel uneasy or even guilty about it.
What are your core values? What do you want to give people through your work? How do you want to use your career to help others? Your ideal career lies in those answers.
What makes you feel like you belong?
Chances are, at one time or another you’ve been enjoying an activity and had the realization of “If I could only do this for a living!” That lightbulb moment is attached to your sense of belonging. That activity gave you so much joy that you knew you could share your love of it with the world until the day you die.
This is the same as the feeling of knowing what gives you worth, and in turn, what you give worth to. What is it that is better because you elevate it? That’s where your gifts are best used. That’s where your energy deserves to be used.
Does your life feel enriched?
To enrich means two things: to add value to and to adorn or decorate. What adorns your life? What makes your life feel like it has greater significance?
When you put in a 40 hour work week, but have little to no joy to show for it, you’re lacking enrichment.
Your career should make you feel energized and overjoyed. Of course it’s going to be mundane sometimes and there will always be things you don’t want to do. Being a mom, wife, friend, sister, all make you want to pull your hair out sometimes, but it’s the joyous moments that make it all worth it, and more often than not you love those roles.
Not only should your work be in service to others, it should also serve you in return. It should give you the feeling of enrichment.
Your dream career is possible! It’s out there and it needs you as much as you need it! Your gifts, talents and abilities are valuable. Go find the place where they belong.
My dream job is working with the red cross. I’ve volunteered, but I haven’t had the courage to leave my current job for the one I actually want.