WORKLIFE GUIDANCE TOOLBOX
Exercise: Map of the calling
Full-time work takes half of our time awake. It is not indifferent what you do all that time. Work that is a calling can be one of the great love stories of your life! So, it really is worth the effort finding "the right one".
This exercise
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helps you to figure out, what could be your calling
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gives you insight to who you really are
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helps you with your career planning.
You will find out, what it is you really like to do. Maybe you could modify your current work to fit better for you? Or maybe this helps you when you consider your alternatives in education?
Instructions
1. Take A4 paper and pen. Find a quiet place. Write down all actions that you like. For example you can write down: reading, writing, driving a car, playing tennis etc. Write down only those things you really like genuinely - not those, that will give you biggest salary or that your mother likes.
2. Go through your list and examine, if something else comes up in your mind: what are inspiring, calling actions to you? Try to fill in the whole paper and in best case scenario, continue on the other side of the paper as well.
3. Evaluate and give points to every action you have written down from 1 to 3.
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Give 3 points to actions, that you are able to do in your life as much as you like.
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Give 2 points to actions, that you are able to do in your life but that you would love to do more if only you had more time or more money.
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Give 1 point to actions, that you can not do enough at the moment or not at all.
Your map is ready. It tells you, who you really are and what would you do, if there were no restrictions in your life.
This exercise is invented by philosophist Lauri Järvilehto in Finland. He has written a book "Upeaa työtä - Näin teet itsellesi unelmien työpaikan" (in English: Wonderful work - this is how you make a dream workplace for yourself). He also blogs and posts about the issue of the calling on his web-page www.upeaatyota.fi (in Finnish).