I’m intrigued by what makes a calling during COVID. There’s a world of difference. Work can simply be a meal ticket or a place to go so other things get done. On the other hand, a calling can be almost spiritual work – work with a higher purpose.
So ask yourself, is your career, job, or work a calling? Does your work drive your passion and purpose? A recent Atlantic called the Gospel of Work America’s new religion where VUCANs finding identity and self-worth:
“For the college-educated elite, it (work) would morph into a kind of religion, promising identity, transcendence, and community. … Some people worship beauty, some worship political identities, and others worship their children. But everybody worships something. And workism is among the most potent of the new religions competing for congregants.”[i]
I’ve known VUCANs whose work was a traditional calling. They enjoyed what they did. They solved difficult problems. They made critical decisions. They helped others. They were at the top of their craft. What did these VUCANs do? One was an actor, another a policeman, and another was a health care worker . The words they used and how they described their work reveals what makes work a calling. They shared the belief that their work and careers ‘made a difference.’ While money was important, the work they did and the VUCANs they worked with were personally critical to them. In a few cases, the successful outcome was money. They described what they did as their ‘passion,’ their work partners as ‘family,’ and workplace as a second home. Other revelations: They ply a craft, not show up for work. It seems two things are required for workism. First, you must have the God-given ability to do a job and derive enjoyment from it. A calling is unique to each of us, perhaps a match of career, attitude, and aptitude that’s made in heaven while tempered on earth. A calling reinvigorates and renews your energies and your perspectives.
Work Lesson Earned: So, what’s your Gospel of Work in a COVID world world? What’s your passion, purpose, and drivers at work? Can you say that about your job? What tradeoffs or sacrifices would you have to make to find your true calling?
[i] ‘Workism Is Making Americans Miserable’, The Atlantic, February 23, 2019.