Do You Want To Quit Your Job?

Last Sunday, Dr. Sheila's message was titled, "Quit Working!" I thought this might be an interesting message, if not entirely applicable to me. I have a job, a very VERY part time job working about 5 hours a week. It keeps me busy, give me a little extra spending money and gets me out of the house. Hardly a stressful situation! Of course I do have my other full time "job" as Mommy to a very busy 3 year old boy, lots of fun, sometimes stressful but with a very large payoff! So I sat to listen to the message and wondered what I would learn from it (as I always learn something!)

While Dr. Sheila was speaking I began to remember a few years ago when I did work outside the home full time. Monday through Friday (and sometimes Saturdays!) I woke up, dressed in my business attire (panyhose...yuck!) and put on my happy demeanor for work. A lot of days I would have rather woken up, put on some shorts and gone to the beach! But it was a job and it earned a decent living and helped pay the bills. But there was something else to that job, something that I didn't realize until I wasn't there anymore. It really fed my soul. Every day I felt like I had, in some way, helped another person. And helping other people has always been a passion for me. Before my "job" as Mommy I had worked for 10 years in the "Long Term Care" Industry. I worked at nursing homes and, at my last job, an Alzheimer's Assisted Living. I spent every day at work with some of the most fantastic people, Seniors with health issues, family caregivers, and nurses and caregivers that worked very hard to take care of their residents. So even though I had to go to work every day...in pantyhose....I was still feeding my soul. I never realized how lucky I was until it wasn't there anymore.

So now I work at a job that, while not stressful, is about as boring as they come! Those few hours a week that I spend copying and pasting serial numbers from an Excel spreadsheet into an Oracle database just doesn't seem that important. I do know that my tiny job is part of a larger process that does help others perform their jobs. And I know that some are very grateful that THEY do not have to copy and paste those silly serial numbers! But I don't have that same feeling of living my passion. So I began to think about what would make me feel like I was making a difference, and it just came to me, volunteer work!

I've always wanted to spend time volunteering in some capacity, but it's a challenge to find ways to do that with a 3 year old son. But after Dr. Sheila's message I just had a fire burning in me!! I just knew there was something I could do. On the internet I found InterFaith Community Services and read about all the great work they are doing in the community. I felt instantly that this would be my new passion! Something I can do to make a difference to people in my community. Are you ready to find your passion? Are you ready to follow your heart? What is it about your job that feeds your soul, or makes it possible to pursue other things that feeds your soul? I encourage you to really get quiet in your mind and look inside to see where your passions lie.

Hugs and Love,
Cindy Huff