Career Comforts

Happy Friday!  

A friend posted the chart below on FB, and I thought it was helpful, especially the categories at the bottom.  

• At present, in my court reporting career, I fall into the "Comfort" category... on a basic level, the world needs court reporters, they pay us well for what we do (better in some states than others), and I am trained to do this job well.  I enjoy my job but wouldn't say that I "love it," so it's not a passion or a place where I find a lot of soul fulfillment.  (And that's 100% okay, contrary to what I used to think.  Three out of four categories here is wonderful.)
• A side job proofreading or being a virtual assistant would fit the same "Comfort" category.  The list of things I really love will always revolve around human connection.
• Blogging falls into the "Passion" or "Fulfillment" category for me -- I love to write and document things, I do it well, and depending on the topic, I believe the world needs more light and hope and connection.
• A career as a paid author or counselor could fall into the "Bliss" category for me if I genuinely felt that I did it well and I made good money there.  I believe bliss is a strong word for any job, honestly... nothing is always perfect on this side of heaven, and we would do well not to have sky high expectations but rather “embrace the partial” in all these categories.
• Motherhood and raising a child will fall into the "Fulfillment" category... I would love it and be good at it, and the world absolutely needs more good, attentive mothers and more deeply loved children!
• On a different level, Aunthood already falls into that "Fulfillment" category for me, along with close friendships and being a contented, joyful single Christian woman, which is pretty cool!  The world needs it, I do it well, and I love it. ❤
• And on the days when I don't feel like I'm doing the motherhood or great friend or joyful singleness thing well, it still falls into the "Vocation"/calling category.
• I guess my point in this post is that we don't have to put so much pressure on our job or on one specific role to fill all these things!!  God likes variety, and we can find purpose in so many different areas.
• For example, the Apostle Paul was a tentmaker, a career where he provided for himself through a skill he performed well that others needed and paid for... but that wasn't his "passion" and was certainly not what he was known or remembered for in the end!
• ...While thinking about how I might feel as a new mother, I thought of this Friends quote last night and got so cracked up.  I've prepared in some ways, but I think there's no way to adequately prepare for that level of life change - you just have to learn a lot as you go.

And learning as you go can be wonderful and exciting (and sometimes overwhelming and exhausting, I'm quite sure)!  And that's okay too.

....That's all I've got for today, gang.
Hope you have a great weekend ahead!!