Are You Doing What You Love?

[Chett]

I know I've been scarce around here over the past few days, sorry for no notice on a few days away from the site.

This past weekend my daughter and I traveled with some friends to the Buffalo National River near Jasper Arkansas. Our agenda for the weekend was to camp, canoe, and hike. We got off to a very rainy start, but the outing shaped up nicely. After an electric thunderstorm on Thursday night we began the cool Friday morning floating down the scenic canyons of the Buffalo. The water was swift at points and the current carried our canoe at a faster pace than I was used to traveling, but overall we moved safely down the waterway. We journeyed nearly 12 miles relatively warm and dry until our last 300 yards. Our canoe safely teetered over a short fall and splashed in to the river, but a swift current pushed our boat into an unseen submerged tree. We were on top of the tree before we realized it was there, and it rocked our canoe over. My daughter, my friend's son, all of our belongings, my co-pilot, and I all were baptized into the frigid river water. We quickly gathered our children and other belongings and finished the float. After a short trip back to camp my daughter decided she was finished floating for the weekend.

The next day while my friends finished the last leg of the river, my daughter and I hiked some of the most beautiful trails in the Ozark Mountains. We walked and talked about life, nature, and the exciting events of the weekend so far. After returning from our hike we began a roller coaster like trip to the pick up point for the rest of our camping party.

When we arrived the sun had moved west for the day and it's rays were shimmering off the river creating a post card like scene against the towering bluffs. I noticed a man sitting on the tail gate of his truck whittling a stick into a totem pole like figure. I left my daughter to skip rocks across the water as I walked over to speak with him. He asked as I walked up "Whata think?" "It's beautiful down here," I replied. I continued, "You're a lucky man if this is your job, to spend all day down on these rivers." "That I am," the outfitter replied, "been doing this since 1974." He went on to tell me how he and several friends came to the river when he was in college studying business. They spent spring break hiking and canoeing and they all pined how they would love to spend the rest of their lives running a business in an area like they were visiting. All of the students returned to college and finished their degrees, moving on to many different business ventures, but the outfitter returned back to the river and began building a business to do exactly what he knew he would love doing. He told me his college friends comeback to visit him now and travel the rivers again as they are nearly retired. They envy the fact that for over 30 years, their friend has been living the dream they all had on a spring break in the early 70's . He absolutely loved his job and the business he had built.

The outfitter asked me, "Whatda you do?" "I teach elementary students," I told him. "You don't look like an elementary teacher," he told me. I told him my story of managing in the corporate world being recalled by the Marines and realizing life was passing me by and I was missing it. I told him teaching gave me an opportunity to slow down a little bit, and it was the closest thing I knew to doing something I loved. "Besides," I said, "I would have never had the time to get away and do something like this when I was running my rat race." I confessed to him that teaching is not perfect, but I am moving closer to where I want to be everyday. My perfect job may be in teaching, but it may be in something related to educating people in some other way, I just really wasn't sure yet, but definitely happier than I was two years ago. With the rushing of the river in the background he pulled off his sunglasses that had been shading his eyes. I gave me a serious look. "Don't settle until you find it," he told me. "My friends come back to visit me now and they settled a long time ago. They settled for more money, a bigger house, more stuff, and none of it made them happy. They return here and remember the ambition and dreams of their youth and wonder what happened to it all . " I stood silent, nodding as I heard my daughter turning over rocks trying to find a perfect skipping stone. I thanked the outfitter for his time and returned to the river's edge flipping over stones still searching for the "right one."

What about you, what success have you found in searching for the perfect job? Are you there now, or closer than you've ever been before, or do you feel you've settled?

There's a saying that I've embraced as I've strived and became more content with life and circumstances. The saying goes "Don't let perfect ruin good." So another question I would ask all of you is when do you settle for good, knowing that chasing perfection may never leave you content?

[Chett]

Natasha,

You have two things going for you.

1. You know what you like and what you don't. You can filter all opportunities through what you already know about yourself and find work that is both fulfilling and sustaining.

2. You are optimistic. I remember your comments from a few months ago and you seemed very frustrated. Now you seem to have gained more clarity in your circumstances, and are hopeful for opportunities that will meet both your personal and financial needs.

I'm glad you have taken the time to find out more about yourself. A lot of people don't know what they want to do, or what they are passionate about and would love to know as much about themselves as you have discovered. Good luck in your search.

[Natasha]

I'm pretty close to perfect. I love what I do -- facepainting and henna body art at the San Diego Wild Animal Park. It gives me a chance to meet people from all around the world, spend time making adorable kids happy and it's creative and colorful. I've learned a lot about painting (I was always a line girl and worked in monotones). And I enjoy being outdoors, near the animals, working with interesting people. The only problem is the pay... or lack of pay. I'm not earning enough to make a dent in my debt and I'm just barely meeting my basic financial commitments....and that's with the full-time hours and a pay raise! I was really hoping this check would reflect the longer hours, the fact that I've broken commission every day this past week and the new pay rates.... but it's actually a bit less than I took home last check... very disappointing. I'm grateful I have some private gigs coming up to help me make it through the month. After taxes and my entertainer's insurance, I have nothing left for the next two weeks. I was really hoping to get beyond this. I used to work in an office that sucked the spirit out of me...but at least I was bringing home $2000/month. So I need to find something that has the satisfaction of my current job with stability and increased income.... it will come. And I'll be ready.