The Art of Work: A Proven Path to Discovering What You Were Meant to Do by Jeff Goins

Author:Jeff Goins
Language: eng
Format: mobi, pdf
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: 2015-03-23T22:00:00+00:00

The Stages of Discovery

Any great discovery, especially that of your life’s work, is never a single moment. In fact, epiphany is an evolutionary process; it happens in stages.

First, you hear the call. It may sound different to each person, but it comes to us all. How we hear and respond to it is what matters. Sadly, many people never recognize the voice summoning them to greatness. Like Samuel, they hear something but aren’t quite sure what to make of it. And without the aid of a mentor or guide, they’re left to make sense of it on their own, which means they may get it wrong.

This is why apprenticeship is so important. Often, discovering what you’re meant to do with your life doesn’t happen until you have spent significant time serving someone else’s dream. We learn what a calling looks like from mentors and predecessors before we can even begin to trust our own voice of calling. Only after you’ve put yourself in the shop of a master craftsman can you understand what your craft requires. Humility is a prerequisite for epiphany. Without it, your dream will be short-lived and self-centered.

Second, you respond. Mere words will not suffice—you must act. A true response to a call requires effort; you have to do something. In Samuel’s case, he repeatedly got out of bed, going to see what his teacher wanted, in spite of the priest’s protests that he was not calling him. What Samuel lacked in astuteness, he made up for with persistence. Apparently, that’s all it takes. A little tenacity will get you to your calling.

Third, you begin to believe. This is the paradox of vocation. We think that passion comes first, that our desire is primary; but if we are truly called, the work always comes before we are ready. We will have to act in spite of feeling unprepared. “The gifts do not precede the call,” someone once told me. And as we step into our life’s work, we discover that we have been preparing for this our whole lives, even though in that very moment we feel insufficient. This is how you know you’re called at all—the experience compels you to grow, to change.

A calling, though mysterious at times, requires a practical response. The way we make our way from dream to reality is through small intentional steps. Decisions reveal opportunity.

Samuel was more prepared than he realized. He had already moved and was living with a holy man, poised for epiphany. And quite by accident, he had done several things to make himself ready for the call, including finding a mentor. Of course, it wasn’t his choice—his parents had done that for him—but in a way, that’s the point. You will inherit opportunities that you didn’t earn on your own, and if you are paying attention, you will recognize them for what they are—chances to hear the call.

The Carlsons’ move to South Africa provided a similar setup for the call to Burundi. They didn’t know this ahead of time, but that’s the beauty.

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