Creating New Roles
Times of great economic, environmental and social change, like the one we are living in, require more innovative thought and action than usual. One response I’m witnessing to this climate of change and barren job market (where the unemployment rate is 9% and the underemployment rate is more like 25%) is that of entrepreneurship. It is a response that I whole-heartedly support because I see the benefits it has brought into my own life and I feel that the inevitable result will be more people following their passions and using their gifts.
Watch for patterns to emerge as you look back at jobs you've held.
While it’s risky to step out and attempt a new career, or pursue a hobby as a source of money, it’s equally if not more dicey, to expect security from an employer. In addition, the ability to use your unique skills and follow your true interests typically challenges and satisfies so much more than following directives, especially one’s you don’t believe in. The key is determining which of your many interests and talents to pursue.
One technique I’ve found helpful is to write down all the jobs you’ve ever held and look for a motif to emerge. Next, jot down roles or duties you may not have initially been hired for, but you ended up doing once your employer knew your strengths. Look for patterns both in the job position as well as those extra tasks you were given.
Once you’ve begun to see one or two key strengths that you’ve put to use before and you’d like to use again, begin to think about creating a new
role for yourself in which you offer these skills to your community and/or the world. Be inventive, be authentic and be aware that you may create a brand new role (service), or perhaps you’ll be led to a traditional role that is new in the sense that you’ve never attempted it. Either way, you’ll have a jumping off point from which to research possibilities.
Even if you’re feeling fulfilled in your work it can be helpful to connect with skills and talents you’ve always had (but never fully pursued), because they may make good sources for alternate streams of income or perhaps they could lead you to create a product which could lead to passive income. It seems that everyone could use a bit of that! Another added benefit could be a more balanced life, particularly if your career requires that you work mostly on the computer, and your side interest might take you out of the office and engaging in the world more physically or socially.
Doing what you love is an important factor in living a healthy, balanced and joyful life on an individual level but I also see it as a vital element in contributing to the healing of our world. Entrepreneurs and small businesses often have an important function in building community, something I feel will be of increasing significance in times to come. As big business folds more and more and we are able to reclaim our ecology, small town economies, and political system, self-employment – whether part or full-time – will be an instrumental piece in building a new, more balanced, sustainable and equitable world.
In balance,
Jenica
