A Coaching Model created by Ian McLean
(Life Transformation Coaching, TRINIDAD and TOBAGO)
What is a Job?
A job can be defined as “work performed in exchange for remuneration” or “a post of employment”. It is a way to earn money to pay your bills and support your family. A job is something we are told we have to do when we leave school/ university.
Many people choose a job based on the following:
- Pay rate- they look for the job that pays the most.
- Whatever is available at the time.
- Based on what they have studied at school/ college.
- What our parents have drilled into us from a young age. You are going to be a doctor, lawyer, dentist, etc.
How does your job make you feel?
For many people (as much as half of all employees) the following rings true. Their jobs make them feel Drained, Tired, Dreary, Bored, Stagnant & Frustrated. Those that chase the highest paying job may find out that money is a poor motivator over time. After the excitement of getting their big pay check or raise what else is left to motivate and drive them. They may be going through the motions and feeling like there is no meaning to their job. They may realise that they really do not like their jobs at all. They studied and pursued jobs that were chosen and dictated to them by others (Parents), and now find themselves stuck in a job/ career that frustrates and drains them.
What is Purpose/ Life Purpose?
Purpose can be defined as “the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists”. Life purpose is about why you are here on this planet. Who is it that you are moved to be and what is it that you are moved to create. It is what you are uniquely created to be and do. It is your mission.
How do we choose a Purpose?
You cannot choose a purpose, it chooses you. It is something that is pre-programmed into your body and soul and it exists whether we are conscious or unconscious of its existence. All of our life experiences and all of our gifts and talents uniquely help us to accomplish our Purpose. Some people have discovered their purpose and aligned it with the jobs/ careers they chose, unfortunately many have not.
How does your Purpose make you feel?
For the fortunate ones (one third) that have aligned their purpose with their jobs the following are true. They feel Energized, Optimistic, Engaged, Aligned, Ease, Freedom, Empowered, Passionate & Productive. They chose their job based on alignment to purpose and not because of money. They love their work so much that they sometimes say that if they could they would work for free. All of their gifts and talents are uniquely configured to do their work and thus it feels effortless and easy. Inevitably, they are very productive and money follows them.
Why do people not align their Jobs with Purpose?
Many persons do not align their jobs with purpose because of Fears. They may have been in one job for so long that they fear changing jobs. Will they have to learn new skills, will they be good at a new job, what if I fail? If I fail how will I take care of my family? All of these thoughts and fears make cause your client to be frozen and avoid any changes. You will need to work through these fears before you can progress further.
Try asking your client to list all of the fears they have about aligning their job with their Purpose. Then with each fear ask, what is the worse thing that can happen, if this fear came true? You now have a deeper fear. Repeat and keep drilling down until you reach bottom. The client may conclude that it’s not a problem at all. Or if it is a problem they may define constraints to aligning their job to Purpose. For example, I will stop if I could not pay my mortgage and feed my family.
How to find your Purpose?
Many persons may simply have no idea what their Purpose is. Some questions you could ask your client that may provide clues are:
- When are the times in your life when you have felt most passionate?
- When are the times you have felt your life has most meaning?
- When have you experienced ease, flow, synchronicity & serendipity?
- What did you want to be when you were small?
- If you had 1 year to live, what would you spend your time doing?
- You have one the lottery and have no more financial needs. You decide to do something meaningful with your life. What do you do?
The answers to these questions will help to figure out one’s purpose. Look for patterns in behavior, feeling & being. See if there is a symbolic pattern. The activities and incidents may be different but they all symbolically represent the same thing.
Reflections
- Ask your client how their job makes them feel?
- Are the answers predominately negative or positive? Negative answers may indicate that they are in the Job perspective, whilst positive answers may indicate that they are in the Purpose perspective.
- Discuss the results with your client.
- If their answers were negative ask them how their life would look if their Purpose was aligned with their Job?
References
True Purpose by Tim Kelley