The Mission a.k.a How to Find the Work You Were Born to Do
The following is a transcription of Episode 1 of The Walkthrough. “The Mission: How to Find the Work You Were Born to Do” by James Alexander @electricsoul. Enjoy!
What’s up Go-Getters.
For my first vlog, I was going to talk about the journey so far.
The weight-loss, the rock band, why I quit my day job, and how I started a ghostwriting business.
I put all that on hold after going to Tampa Bay Startup Week.
StartUp Week is this 5-day business conference where experts from across the country fly in to talk shop with local entrepreneurs.
I larned a lot,I got to see Gary Vee talk; that was cool. It was a good time.
After spending a few days around a thousand or so entrepreneurs, I noticed something. Let me explain.
At any business meet-up, you expect that most of the people there already have a business up and running. They came to get specific answers to questions that could help get their business to the next level.
What I didn’t expect were all the people who had no clue what their business should be or where to start.
These people came looking for direction. Inspiration hadn’t struck yet so they were still looking for that “holy s**t! this is what I want to do” moment you always hear about.
It’s tough because what do you do when you know that you’re meant for more, but you can’t quite figure out how to get unstuck?
How do you find the work you were born for?
Today’s Walkthrough is about The Mission. The big picture vision you have for your life. Maybe the most important decision you’ll ever make. Maybe.
Let’s go.
They say your mission is your calling — the thing you were born to do.
For some people that picture is crystal clear. You wake up in the morning, fired up with a sense of purpose. You can see what you want off in the distance so you keep moving in that direction to get it…
For others, the picture can be a little blurry.
There’s nothing calling you over the hill and into the promised land. Nothing making itself obvious to you. Which can make you feel stuck.
I ran into a lot of dead ends when I had this problem, so I hope this helps.
First, a word of warning…
Before I get started, I should point out, if you’re happy exactly where you are in life. This vlog episode isn’t for you.
This is for people who are still on the hunt. So if you’re still spinning your wheels, looking for something, anything, that might shake the cobwebs loose and get you moving in the right direction, then stick around.
So, here’s what worked for me.
Step 1
Look at your stuff
Look around your space. What do you see?
Sneakers, books, makeup, magazines, ticket stubs?
What are you buying? What do you do with your downtime? When your mind wanders, where does it go?
These are all clues.
We’re looking for what you spend your time, money, and energy on.
When I look at my stuff, one thing is clear: I like to use my hands. I like to make things.
You can turn a closet full of sneakers into a podcast or a love of anime into comedy skits.
Chances are you might be an authority in something and don’t realize it.
Step 2
What can you talk about for hours?
This is a really useful question because as you already know, it takes a ton of energy to talk about something you don’t actually care about.
If you can talk about something for hours, then you might be able to use that energy to build something around that topic.
So the question is, what lights you up? What excites you?
Is it construction, video game design, sports, animals, fitness, food?
For me, it’s movies. Specifically, storytelling. I can 100% talk about storytelling for hours.
I used to travel in a band so when I was on the road, I’d sometimes watch two or three movies a day, I’d inhale two books a week, then I’d practice writing my own stories that might play out on screen.
The point is, if something gets you that fired up, it’s worth exploring.
Step 3
A friend of mine introduced me to this concept called Ikigai.
From what I understand, Ikigai is a Japanese word that loosely translates into “Reason For Living.” The thing you were born to do.
That could be total bullshit, but it got my mind working in the right direction.
Ikigai has 4-parts. Actually… let’s do it like this.
[*see video link for illustration clip]
1. What does the world need?
Ask yourself, “what does the world need?” then get intensely curious about your solution.
For me, it’s empathy. Empathy for yourself and empathy
other people
The world can put a lot of limits on you. It’s way too easy to convince yourself you don’t deserve what you want based on some prior bulls**t.
It’s amazing what you can accomplish when you aren’t beating yourself up.
2. What can you be paid to do?
Also known as, the side hustle. Almost everyone has *something* they can do for extra cash. Maybe you can bake cakes on the weekend. Maybe you’re a killer handyman. You can drive for Uber, dog-sit, whatever you want. You get the idea. Things people will pay you for.
If you *had* to make $20 today, had to, what could you do?
For me, it’s writing because it’s a resilient side hustle. Just about every surface we look at has writing on it, so I doubt the need for writers will go away anytime soon.
3. What you are good at?
This is a passion question. What do you care about so much that you invest a ton of time into it? Are you crushing it on Fortnite? Then start a Twitch stream. eSports players are killing it right now.
You 100% have something that you’re really good at, whether you recognize it or not.
And don’t let anyone tell you that what you’re passionate about is a waste of time. Ignore that negativity.
For me, again, it’s movies and stories. I spend so much time thinking about stories.
4. What do you love to do
Think about it like this: What makes you feel great? Is it finding homes for rescue dogs? Helping people get in shape? Spending time with old folks? This is something that you do that makes you feel like you are making the world around you a better place.
For me, I like brainstorming with people. When someone has a problem, be it personal or work stuff, I find the time to get down in the trenches with someone to work through it because that’s what I’d want. I love it. Seeing people breakthrough is super rewarding for me.
That was my aha-moment.
I’d have to stick my head in the sand not to see a very clear theme was staring me in the face…
I like stories, making things, and breakthroughs.
These things felt incompatible but they weren’t, I just had to figure out how to connect them. That’s where your idea for whatever you want to do will start to take shape.
This vlog is the first step in connecting those ideas.
I want to help people become the strongest versions of themselves by starting with myself and working out from there.
So I wrote down a mission statement and taped it to a wall in every room in my house: “my mission is to create stories that push the human race forward.”
It’s an outrageous sounding thing, but it works for me. It keeps my mind pointed in the right direction. I get genuinely excited when I walk past it every day. It renews my mind because I know why I’m doing what I’m doing.
Here’s the thing; once you know your mission, once you know that big picture, you have a compass that won’t work for anyone else but you. You know in an instant if what you are about to do maps to that ambition.
The books you read, the podcasts you listen to, how you socialize, why you socialize, all your actions — it’s all on the table.
Are you saying yes to the things that move you closer to your goal? Are you saying no to the thing that will prevent your success?
That’s why “to travel for a living” is too vague to be useful.
Knowing “why” you’re doing something will keep going when you hit speed bumps and roadblocks.
One of the biggest obstacles we have to overcome is the nasty little voice in our heads telling us that we can’t do something or that don’t deserve something.
Doubt will destroy your potential and create a toxic mindset that will sabotage just about everything you do.
If you love a thing, go after it…
There are over 7 billion people on this planet. There are people out there who need to hear what you have to say or see what you can do.
Your unique viewpoint, your gifts and interests, are what makes you valuable.
So pay attention to how you feel, don’t let your head get in the way at first. There’s plenty of time for that later. Besides, your heart knows more about you than you do.
Follow “electricsoul” on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
At the end of the day, your life’s mission is whatever brings you and the people around you happiness, purpose, and meaning.
Your life’s mission makes you authentic to who you are.
I’ll leave you with this…
Thich Nhat Hanh said, “whatever makes you come alive, go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have
come alive.”
Ok! That’s it. That was fun. I’m excited about this community we’re creating. I hope every video encourages you and gives you strength.
If you liked the video, hit the subscribe button. If you didn’t, why’d you watch to the end? Sheesh.
I’ll be back next week with a different kind of video. Then another episode of The Walkthrough the week after that.
Until next time, Be Bold. Make Things Happen.
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The Walkthrough is brought to you by Electric Soul Studios, creating stories that push the human race forward. More information about Electric Soul at www.electricsoul.tv
Originally published at https://electricsoulstudios.medium.com on November 10, 2020.
