How does Calling work?

Man, there aren’t enough words or time to dig deeply into this. Mainly because the author of this blog is trying to figure it out and would much rather spare you the length of read and wait until it’s sorted to share the abbreviated version. However. Read on.

A Calling is a specific orientation of activities that just seem to naturally work. Not the official definition there is Google Search for that lol

Most situations of a Calling will have telltale signs that lets the owner of such a call know that they have that call. Again, back to examples.

A minister is called. They just have that knowing, at some point in time, that this is like a destiny for them. A cop has that gut instinct that lets them know they’re cop material. A teacher just has that leaning in them that says educate.

A person does not have to be working inside the profession of their call to be able to recognize their calling. Many times, the clues are spotted by friends and family way before the person knows they have the call. What is clear, there are things that fall into the spectrum of gifts, talents, and passions that helps identify the calling a person has.

Quote My Coworker Wrote

“The things you are passionate about are not random. They are your calling”

This blog post was inspired by this quote. It resonated with the author because at this junction in time, many hints have knocked loudly enough, it’s time to figure out how to answer the call. No, it won’t be answered here on this blog, sorry.

As one who had to help others answer the question of “what’s my calling?”, it’s important the conversation starts in this reflective piece.

Why is passion so important

Ultimately, life gets hard. Sure, it has rosy beautiful days. But, it does back you up against a wall a few too many times. In order to move past the obstacles, you need more than just the idea you can get past it.

When learning new skills, many failures will happen. The main reason why the advice of “follow your passions” is given is simply because in tough rough times, that is the only spark of energy that keeps you getting up and moving forward.

The athlete who is passionate about getting gold at the next Olympics will put in amazing hard work beyond what the average person will do. Not because they’re anymore dedicated, which usually is the case, but because that emotional drive is burning inside: passion.

What’s love got to do with this?

Humans are emotional creatures which makes decision making a bit sloppy and messy. If you’ve got no desire and drive to press forwards, no amount of pay will motivate you to move forward. That is what passion is all about. That intangible currency that will make you do things for free to get skills to succeed… even if the lights are getting cut off. The hope of the big payoff is pressing.

The other funny thing about humans, they tend to fall in love. Silly really. But yeah, they do. Doing something that gets you in the zone over and over eventually starts to ignite passion…aka love. You get good at it. It sparks pride. The reward system, as interesting as it is, will have you believing that you’re filled with passion, so you press on.

The musician who hates the grueling scales learns to find comfort in them and do them over and over because of the joy of doing a complex composition on stage is so rewarding… one forgets the pain of the hours of drudgery. Passion has taken over. Love has fueled the progress. And then, expertise starts to kick in. The place where talent/gift/skills all start to merge into one.

What about the person who has no passion?

There is hope. You don’t need passion or gifts to get good at something. The marginal advantage of talent is that you can reach the marginal edges better/faster. However, smart dedicated practice gets you there just the same (provided there are no physical limits that can’t be crossed… like… this writer will never be able to dunk from the mid-court line… wrong body type).

Look to the things that you do with a degree of ease that others can’t do. Look to the things you naturally prefer to do when there is a 50:50 choice between equal choices. Look at the things you tend to try out without being pushed to try.

Ask others to tell you about yourself and what ignites you. What makes you smile. What makes you curious. Everyone has one thing they’re naturally good at. Yes, sleeping counts.

These things help give you an insight into what you are either passionate about or will become passionate about. Then, zoom out a bit, look at the bigger picture, and as the pieces start to fall into place, you’ll see what that call is for you.

Again, this is not a how-to-type post… but a reflective post.

(more on the next page)