Career vs. Calling

The Dilemma of Choice

Often times passions are categorized as hobbies. College students are constantly finding new hobbies and interests over time. It’s difficult to pinpoint a career in the span of four years. College is a new environment where there is an eclectic group of social change. The major you thought you enjoyed can seem redundant. The interest you thought you hated can be renewed because maybe you saw it in a new light. There is an array of choices in college from social groups to academic planning.

What is Purpose to you?

Beneath all this choice there is a need for personal purpose because without it all the hours put into classes and assignments can be meaningless. A sense of purpose can be subjective. The literal meaning is to have a consistent base of motivation or direction. This where one’s calling comes in. This is different from career because one’s calling can be a great communicator, but their career maybe an accountant. It’s important that people have individual drives to what fuels them in order to build their ultimate career visions.

(Image by Career Confidential)

Your Calling

This is your natural ability to do something. It can range from easily making connections or being an incredible observer. Often times within educational systems there isn’t a huge emphasis on personal growth and skill. People are immediately required to choose a major and this in a sense pre determines your career. A calling is an intrinsic will to abide in and reference to throughout your college process.

Your Career

It’s hard to coincide career goals with our passions because often times there is no immediate financial incentive. Post graduate students are more likely to find themselves wandering either with no sense of career choice or a career choice that may guarantee financial stability. Where is the line drawn between financial steadiness and career happiness? It’s important to take into consideration the practicalities of functional living. After college can your possible job meet your basic necessities such as a living space and transportation? Also it’s essential that your career can either benefit your calling or refine what you are already good at. For instance, if a teacher is a horrible speaker the students maybe rowdy and irritated with their lack of comprehension. However when a teacher is a easy communicator students will feel heard and validated, providing an open environment to learn.

(Image by Bryant Archway)

Maximize Resources

There is a common phrase that undergraduates face “I’m not good at anything” or “I have no talent” Any university setting has been funded through copious amounts of tax dollars and corporate funding. Each campus has an array of events, staff, and social clubs to attend. However, when people don’t try to reach out to these resources its left untouched. Putting in effort and trying can only lead you somewhere; instead of staying remotely stationary. Try new clubs and if you are interested in a particular topic reach out to a professor who is in that field of study.

College is an eventful four years. Social interaction is a great segway to learn about relational compatibility, but at the end of the day college can also be a chance to find out what type of education excites you. It can be anything from a beauty parlor to an intense political science debate. Your career and calling is not going to suddenly arrive in one day. It takes a series of discipline and hardwork to redefine what it is for you. Time is of the essence, continually seek out what you love and keep on.

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