Life. Work.
The words unexpectedly left my mouth…like a boy saying “I love you” out of impulse.
I could tell my good friend, a man in his late fifties, was surprised.
“I don’t know many people your age who would use those words about their work.”
It had been a long few days full of teaching, meeting with students, producing videos, preparing for last week’s graduation.
When my friend asked me if I was enjoying all of it, I didn’t say yes or no, I simply said, “It’s been my life’s work.”
I know. I know. That was a slightly dramatic response. I’ve barely started my thirties and I’ve only worked on Ei for a few years. It’s been a blink.
But over the past month, our team and I watched the third class of amazing individuals finish our year-long Fellowship. Their stories are incredible. Then last week, we welcomed this year’s new class. The first few days together were packed with meaningful learning and growth. All the while, our team is leading three new group experiments around the intersection of education and vocation. The past few weeks have been an exciting time around Ei, to say the least.
But when did this go from an idea…to work…to sputtering the words “life’s work?” And is that a good thing??
Life. Work.
It used to be that your family and location determined your vocation. Only in the past century, and more specifically the past fifty years, have we been afforded so many opportunities at every turn. Now, those opportunities present themselves every single day, multiple times a day. At the drop of a hat, you can switch from a barista, to a software developer, to a cobbler, to a the founder of your own company.
Opportunities are great, until you have too many. Then they can become haunting, nagging, joy-stealing ghosts that follow your every commitment. The number of vocational/life options combined with a world that’s advancing and changing rapidly makes it daunting to determine what work you should do and for how long you should do it.
There is no formula for landing in the “right” life & work. But I’ve spent a lot of time with people who are at points of transition. A few patterns continue to emerge:
Values: This takes some soul searching. What do you care about? Deep down…what matters most to you? It doesn’t have to be every major global issue. Start by examining where you spend most of your time or money. Pay attention to what things catch your attention regularly in the media. As those things surface, ask yourself “Why?” A lot. You’ll find your values in that exploration.
Energy: What activities energize you rather than drain you? When do you get lost in time because you enjoy what you’re doing so much? If you haven’t felt that, try different things for short periods of time and see what sticks. It may be working with your hands, creating art, raising a family, counseling others, etc. As soon as you experience that kind of energy, call it out.Remember it and tell someone you’re going to try focusing more time there. Then, start spending more of your days doing those activities for something you value.
Community: Who inspires you? Who do you respect? Find ways to work with or for them. They’ll teach you new things and validate your progress. You’ll need to do the same for them. Create a rhythm of producing work even when its not perfect, helping others in similar areas, getting feedback from people smarter than you, and sharing what you learned after a project is finished. You’ll find that your community is where you’ll feel the fulfilling switch from “student” to “doer” to “teacher” and back again.
Resources: What are your most important needs? Make sure they’re met and do your best to keep your desire for “More. Bigger. Better.” in check with your values. If money was one of the major things you value (which is totally ok), that may determine much of what you pursue next.
And remember… life’s work doesn’t mean you have to do it forever, nor does it entail quitting your job tomorrow. It’s something worth putting your life into – your best time, energy, and resources – for a consequential period of time.
That’s when you’ll find yourself doing work that gives you life. And living a life that works.