In this series, we’re focusing on the LIVE WELL 6. These are 6 areas of self care that I believe will help you live your life well and stay focused on what matters most. Today, we’re continuing the LIVE WELL series with part 5 – Live Well Vocationally.
Vocation isn’t a word that gets tossed around a lot but when talking about lifestyle, I think it’s an important word. The simple definition of a person’s vocation is a person’s occupation. Most often this is the thing that pays the bills, however, it’s not limited to that. I like to think of vocation as simply the main work a person does (paid or unpaid).
I think that the concept of work gets a bad rap because we often only associate it with the thing we do to pay the bills and too often our jobs are occupations we’d rather not have and therefore, we end up dreading the work we have to do. But a quick recap of Genesis 1 & 2 tells us that God created mankind to work. Part of being made in the image of God is the ability to cultivate, create, produce, problem-solve, and use and manage resources and talents. In short, we were made to work! And work looks different in different seasons of life. I believe that living well vocationally means being intentional about how we approach and take advantage of the work set before us. So whether it’s a job you hate, a career path that makes you jump out of bed every morning with excitement, mundane tasks that never seem to end, a dead end gig, or the thing you swore you’d never do, your work and how you do it matters!
In this post, I’m going to share some ways you can live well vocationally!
1. Do your best at all times
This can be really tough on days when you’re simply not feeling it but having a solid work ethic that pushes you to excellence is what will make you stand out amongst the rest. That doesn’t mean you have to do everything perfectly but you should care enough to do your best for your organization, the people you work for, the people you work with, and the people you serve.
2. Look for the silver linings
I’ve worked jobs that I dreaded going to every. single. morning. But when I look back, I can find the silver linings in each of those jobs, things that made the days more bearable. Sometimes the silver lining is that paycheck! But maybe it’s the conversations you have with your coworker, the inside jokes at the office, the opportunity to help a customer, patient, or client, or the days the reps come to visit. Maybe it’s the photo you have of your kiddos on your desk or the yummy lunch you can’t wait to eat on break. If nothing else, it could always be the lessons God is teaching you during this season of not loving your job. There’s always a silver lining – you just have to look for it!
3. Be the sunshine
Sometimes work environments can be toxic, super dull, or extremely frustrating! This can be very difficult but this is a chance to be the sunshine in a not-so-great-work environment.
This is the time to smile at people, remember your manners, be helpful, speak in full sentences, ask questions, be genuinely interested in how people are doing, in short, step up your game. Being the sunshine in a difficult environment is hard and can be draining but you never know what kind of difference it can make to the people you work with and/or serve.
4. Don’t bring work home
I am 100% not good at this. Whenever I work a 9-5, I absolutely, without fail, come home and talk about it! I talk about how frustrating the day was, how I didn’t like how so-and-so did such-and-such, and how I think things should be done differently. It’s a bad habit. And while there is time a time to vent and decompress, we shouldn’t let work drama interfere with our free time with friends and family.
5. Keep the vision
No matter if you love your work or hate your work or whether or not you get paid for it – keep a vision. Have an idea of where you’d like to be in 3, 5, and 10 years. Make a plan for how you’d like to improve your situation or career. Explore ideas for how you can make a bigger impact. Dream about what will happen if you push through this project, troubleshoot this dilemma, or stay true to this season even though it’s boring or mundane.
There’s absolutely a chance you’re not going to end up where you planned and that can be a beautiful thing! Keeping a vision for your life can help you make better decisions for you life so that you’re living well and staying focused on what matters most. Without any kind of vision or direction, you’re more apt to live reactively rather than purposefully. The world is too big and full of possibilities not to create and pursue opportunities to do good work that will make a difference for someone else. Whatever your skill sets and passions are, always keep a vision of upward and onward in mind.
In what ways do you need to live well vocationally in the season of life you’re currently in? I’ll definitely be sharing more as I continue to learn in this area!
If you missed the previous posts in this series, you can check them out here:
Leave a Reply