#1356 - Do something meaningful
Do what you love.
Have you ever received this piece of advice?
Maybe, you've read that famous quote from Confucius, "choose a job you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."
I personally think it's a misleading invitation.
One that creates a lot of frustration.
First, you must know what you love, which is easier said than done. And it's getting even harder with the speed at which the world is changing and evolving. Second, if you just do what you love, you may end up hating that same thing you love when you realize that reality is way more complex and you can't just do the things you love to succeed in anything.
I don't do what I love. Not always, at least.
But I do what is needed for who or what I love.
There lies the big difference for me.
It's not the what; it's the why.
The meaning.
So, instead of doing what we love, we should do something for someone or something we love. Something meaningful.
I always thought my sister loved teaching, so she did what she loved. And for a long time, I envied her for that clarity.
But that wasn't entirely true. She loved children, and teaching was her way of serving them. That helped her through the struggles she faced as a teacher. And when she had to stop teaching, she found other ways to serve the ones she loved.
So, don't do what you love. Do something meaningful to you. Do something for someone or something you love.
Then you'll find success and happiness.
"For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one's dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself." — Viktor Frankl