Yes, I know that I missed last week after a flawless streak of posting at 10:00 a.m. every Saturday morning for months. I have a good excuse, okay?! I had writer’s block or maybe I should call it writer’s dilemma because it wasn’t that I didn’t have any ideas to write but I had so many great ideas that I wasn’t sure which one to flesh out. The words just didn’t seem to be coming to me in the right order (is there already a term for this?) Writer’s bubble? Writer’s Babble, maybe?…
I did what I usually do when this happens; I continued on with my week convinced that the right subject would fall from the heavens and knock me on the head with continuously flowing words and I would once again go into my rain-man like trance writing a stellar post.
Forcing yourself to write doesn’t always churn out the best material. So, I’m glad to say that it worked, as it usually does. I was having an intense conversation with my significant person about the invisible pull we feel on our lives that drags us toward the calling/purpose meant for us; the only problem is that chasing that Pull often translates into changing jobs often, confusion and frustration. It sometimes includes being jobless, penniless, and clueless.
I wrote about changing jobs in the pursuit of more viable opportunities in my last post but I’d like to contradict myself a little if I may. What do you do when you feel uneasy in every job you’ve had because it isn’t aligned with your purpose. What do you do when the invisible Pull on your life drags you towards something unseen and not clearly defined and is so strong you can’t even settle? In a world where so many of our peers are chasing a check, how do you instead chase the pull? I want to attempt to answer this.
What is “Chasing the Pull?”
Have you ever gone to a job where the pay is good, the relationship with the co-workers are good, benefits and time off are plentiful, you even have a boss who adores you but as you drift off into your mid-afternoon daydream, all you feel is this incredible sense that you’re not supposed to be there? Questions like “Why am I here?” “Can I really do this for the next 20 years? and “I love this job but it’s not really me?” ring in your ear. No matter how much coffee you drink, or how much personal news you share you just know that there’s something better out there for you. Something that’s just your size and fit. That feeling is the pull. Your purpose is pulling you toward it but the catch is that it’s up to you whether you actually chase after it or not.
Chasing The Pull is NOT like chasing a dream, it’s different. The Pull is intangible, invisible and sometimes incredibly frustrating. Imagine an invisible rope being lassoed around you, at moments in your life that rope is slack and you’re able to maneuver around and enjoy your day-to-day. In seasons of transition, the rope is taut, it pulls you out of your complacency and makes you uncomfortable. It tugs on you to leave where you were to follow something you can’t even see and have only begun to understand. That’s the pull. Some people are born knowing their purpose so there is no real pull. Others are in-tune to the pull but have yet to fully understand the purpose. Then there are others who ignore it and stay in a job/place that was never truly meant for them long enough until they no longer feel the pull.
Which one are you?
Method Madness
Chasing the Pull doesn’t always look the same across the board. There are many methods to its madness.
Chasing my Pull looks a lot like me job hopping but really it is me picking up skills that will be used later as a great foundation in the next job and ultimately THE JOB. I discovered a while ago that I needed to trust this method and all it’s madness as each new job or opportunity has utilized something from the previous one. Each time I transition after following the Pull, into a new field or career, I begin to get a clearer image of what my purpose is. The out-of-focus purpose gets more defined as I allow myself to be led by the Pull.
Be the Horse and Drink
Sometimes we get complacent and forget we have a specific purpose meant for us in our pursuit of immediate money, rightfully so. However, often in that complacency we begin to get this nagging feeling of not belonging. You know I love a good metaphor so let’s start with this; imagine you’re a horse.
Yes, you can be a white unicorn for all I care just follow me on this.
You’re grazing in a field near murky water and your passenger starts tugging on the reins to get you to travel up the ridge to the other side. All you know is that you like grazing in the grass and even though the water at the pond is murky you’re glad you have it. You’re tired, chilling and are in no mood to give up this certainty of food and water. What you don’t know is that the passenger is trying to lead you to greener grass and clearer waters. You can either resist the pull at your reins or give in and follow its direction.
Choose wisely.
You Can’t Answer the Call if Your Phone ain’t On
As with anything we must incorporate the realities of life into chasing our Pull. Those realities take on the name “light bill” “car insurance” “rent” and much more. At some point we must venture into the highly confusing, uncomfortable environment of a 9 to 5 or third shift or whatever; in order to keep the lights on. This does not automatically mean that you are ignoring your Pull but rather that you are being productive in the process of chasing. The chase is not meant to be comfortable. It’s meant to prepare you.
Knowing what works best for your life and situation is essential. While one person can cut all ties to traditional work to chase their pull another may only be able to engage in the chase through various work experiences. Not all entrepreneurs are meant to submerge themselves full-time into the chase. Many times it isn’t practical or beneficial. I mean , hell, even President Obama was pushing the soft serve at Baskin Robbins at one point in his life. How many times do you think he looked down at the ice cream scoop in his hand and thought “This ain’t it.”
On the outside following the Pull can look a lot like slacking off because you’re not necessarily following the traditional path of go to school, land a job, build a career, start a family. Sometimes it’ll look like changing majors multiple times, it’ll look like applying to different jobs with vastly different industries, it’ll look like moving cities every few years or even switching relationships often. It’s the chase of a pull. The real question is, what’s pulling you?
Do you have a PULL Builders? Do you know what it is? Comment below and Let’s Talk!
My PULL is helping people, one millennial mistake at a time.
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