Dream up your perfect job

We spend at least eight hours per day working, some of us much more. We have every reason to want to enjoy the time.

 

This exercise will help you choose the best job for you, as long as you know the kinds of things you like to do. One caveat: If you’re young enough that you haven’t had a lot of work experience, you may not know enough about yourself or the work world to gain a great deal. However, you may have enough imagination to make it work anyway. Keeping that in mind, give it a shot.

 

You’ll need a notebook or journal in which you can write quite a bit. If you think better keyboarding, go ahead and use your computer.

 

Relax for about five minutes. Close your eyes and empty your mind of any annoyances or “to-do” lists. Just let your mind rest. If you have trouble quieting your mind, pay attention to your breathing, saying to yourself “breathing in” when you inhale and “breathing out” when you exhale. Typically, that will keep your mind busy enough to let it rest from its thinking duties.

 

The following lists are seeds and suggestions. Some are repetitious, but one way of saying something may spark an idea, where another won’t, or maybe there are two ideas that need to be written. Answer all of them in as much detail as possible. If you get stuck, close your eyes and rest a bit. Feel grateful for being able to do work you love so much. Pay attention to what flashes into your mind. Write it down, even if it doesn’t seem to fit or make sense.

 

·       Who are you at work?

·       Do you have a title?

·       Do you lead or follow? 

·       Do you work alone?

·       With people?

·       How many other people?

·       Are they doing the same things you are?

·       What do you wear to work?

·       What do people call you?

·       Do you work for yourself?

·       Do you work for someone else?

 

 

·       What activities do you do during the day?

·       Are they largely thinking activities or working with your hands?

·       Do you stand, sit, walk or a combination of physical postures and activities?

·       Do you work with specific equipment?

·       What does it look like?

·       Do you talk a lot?

·       Do you talk with people in person?

·       Do you talk with people on the phone?

·       Do you communicate other ways?

·       Do you listen a lot?

·       In person?

·       On the phone?

·       Do you solve problems?

·       What kind?

·       Do you do the same thing for much of the day?

·       Do your activities vary from hour to hour?

·       From day to day?

·       Is your work done at the end of the day?

·       If it continues, when?

·       If it does not continue, do you do the same type of work tomorrow?

·       Do you make something? What?

·       Do you help with something? What?

 

 

 

 

·       Where do you work?

·       In what part of the country?

·       In what size community?

·       In what size company?

·       Inside or outdoors?

·       Do you commute?

·       How far and how often?

·       Do you travel?

·       How far and how often?

·       In an office?

·       In a vehicle?

·       At home?

·       In other people’s offices or homes?

·       What does your work space look like?

·       What colors and textures are present?

·       Describe the light.

·       How does it smell?

·       What do you hear?

·       What is the temperature?

 

·       When do you get up?

·       When do you start working?

·       When do you take breaks?

·       When do you eat?

·       When do you change activities?

·       Does someone tell you when to do something or do you decide for yourself?

·       When do you stop working?

·       When do you take a day off?

·       When do you take a vacation?

·       How many vacations do you take per year?

·       How long do you want to do this job?

 

·       Why do you do your work?

·       What is important to you about what you do?

·       What is important to other people?

·       What gives you a sense of accomplishment?

·       What are you proud of?

·       What makes you feel good about your work?

·       What is the advantage of this type of work?

·       What is exciting about your work?

·       What is the payoff?

·       What is the reward?

·       Are you making money?

·       Enough money?

·       What makes you good at your work?

·       What makes you like it so much?

 

 

 

·       What don’t you like about your work?

·       What isn’t there that’s important to you?

·       What is the disadvantage of this type of work?

·       Is it dangerous?

·       Will this type of work be needed next year?

·       In five years? Ten? Twenty?

·       How could it change?

Now, imagine you’re waking up on a very new day. Everything is exciting and fresh this day. You’ll be able to do anything and everything you’ve always wanted to do at work. How does this look? Write it down very quickly, almost before you can think about it. Describe every detail, every scene, every minute by minute, just keep writing, as the time goes by. Where are you? Note the time of day, the smells and sounds. What are others around you doing? If you get stuck, see where you are in the day:

·       Waking up

·       Getting ready for work.

·       Going to work

·       Arriving at work

·       Doing the first thing

·       Doing the second thing.

·       Doing all of the other morning things

·       Lunch

·       Doing all of the afternoon things

·       Getting ready to be done with work

·       Doing the last thing for the day

·       Leaving work

 

Your day can be incredibly full. You don’t have to obey the laws of time that say we have only 24 hours. Work as much as you like. Do everything you like to do! Write until you absolutely cannot think of another thing you want to do in a workday.

 

 

Now, read back over everything you’ve written. Fill in blanks. Add question marks where you don’t remember what you meant. It will come to you.

 

Spend a good amount of time thinking, writing and talking about what your dream means to you. Share it with a trusted friend. Consider what would happen if you implemented it in your life. Usually, dreams seem bigger than life, and they can be intimidating when we try to fit them into our mortal 24-hour days. Live with the fear for awhile. You may recognize that it isn’t as scary as you thought at first.