My friends/family and I have often had the discussion, over the years, about whether it's possible for everyone to work in a career that is also Soulfully Fulfilling. Or do you get a job that's nice, that's fine, and be Souful in your spare time? Or is that settling? Ahhhh!
I recently sent my brother another
article on this topic. And he really liked one of the comments that was posted in reply:
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I think there’s a big dose of missing the point here.
The advice is to “follow your bliss” not “follow your bliss to the exclusion of all else while they turn the heat off and you can’t feed your kids.” Maybe some of those janitors aren’t following their bliss at work, but are following it in their off hours. Maybe their bliss is fathering four healthy, happy kids or maybe they do stand-up comedy on the weekends.
And it’s about following, not reaching. It’s the journey, not the destination. FINDING your bliss is just as much a part of following it. Discovering who you are and what you love (and how that’s changed over time as well) is part of the following.
Finally, let’s not confuse bliss with success. Unless money is your only bliss (in which case go ahead and work for the highest bidder to the exclusion of all else) you can follow your bliss without talent or major sacrifice or going bankrupt. Painting is your bliss? Well, you can paint with a minimal outlay of cash for supplies. You can paint in the evenings and weekends. You can paint even if you suck. You can paint if you never get famous. You can paint if no one ever buys your work (like Van Gogh before he died). There’s no commandment that says “thou shalt not do things unless they bring approval / cash rewards.”
So follow your bliss. It isn’t just good advice, it’s a critical component to living.
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"Follow your bliss" was coined by one of my fave mentors, Joseph Campbell. He's not talking about getting a job, he's talking about your life:
"...if you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in the field of your bliss, and they open the doors to you. I say, follow your bliss and don't be afraid, and doors will open where you didn't know they were going they to be."
The Power of Myth
I think there’s a big dose of missing the point here.
The advice is to “follow your bliss” not “follow your bliss to the exclusion of all else while they turn the heat off and you can’t feed your kids.” Maybe some of those janitors aren’t following their bliss at work, but are following it in their off hours. Maybe their bliss is fathering four healthy, happy kids or maybe they do stand-up comedy on the weekends.
And it’s about following, not reaching. It’s the journey, not the destination. FINDING your bliss is just as much a part of following it. Discovering who you are and what you love (and how that’s changed over time as well) is part of the following.
Finally, let’s not confuse bliss with success. Unless money is your only bliss (in which case go ahead and work for the highest bidder to the exclusion of all else) you can follow your bliss without talent or major sacrifice or going bankrupt. Painting is your bliss? Well, you can paint with a minimal outlay of cash for supplies. You can paint in the evenings and weekends. You can paint even if you suck. You can paint if you never get famous. You can paint if no one ever buys your work (like Van Gogh before he died). There’s no commandment that says “thou shalt not do things unless they bring approval / cash rewards.”
So follow your bliss. It isn’t just good advice, it’s a critical component to living.
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"Follow your bliss" was coined by one of my fave mentors, Joseph Campbell. He's not talking about getting a job, he's talking about your life: