It’s just a job — Five lies that keep us from our calling
Five Lies That Keep Us From Our Calling [01]
THE FIVE LIES
There are five lies that we tuck into on a regular basis which keep us from recognising and following our calling. Let’s pick them apart and, in the process, discover how it’s much better than we might imagine.
This is number one in the Five Lies That Keep Us From Our Calling series.
IT’S JUST A JOB
How would our world be different if Leonardo da Vinci saw himself as only a painter?
Sure, we would have those masterpieces: The Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, but we wouldn’t have:
books full of his anatomical insights;
and the countless other inventions to his name.
Did you know that based on observation alone Leonardo noted "Il sole non si move” — the Sun does not move?
You see, Leonardo is rightfully given the moniker of “universal genius” because he did not restrict the application of his passion to one job, one role or one profession. His calling was not to painting, to anatomy, engineering or invention. It was something much broader that could never fit inside of a job spec. It was something like: “to discover and communicate the natural order of life,” and his genius was to bring this to bear across each of these professions as the opportunities arose.
You can get a feel for this ambition in the words of the man himself:
"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”
"I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”
He was not looking to confine his passion to a single job. So why do we?
When we think of our calling as just a job, the first thing it does is limit us.
OUR CALLING IS MORE THAN A JOB
Firstly, it should be said that our calling does have a lot to do with our jobs, which is where the confusion comes from but it’s much more than that. It has to be.
We are each unique, and made for a purpose, and we should not expect our calling to fit neatly into a specific profession for the rest of our lives.
Further, if we have a view of vocation as something like the hunt for the perfect job spec, then what does that say about all those other areas of life which are outside of industry? We run the risk of relegating the most meaningful parts of life to mere distractions, and valuing only what can make us money.
But the soul wants meaning, not money or success. And our calling is expansive enough to include all of this.
Our job title might be “author”, but our vocation is about purpose: so the question is “for what and whom are we using our writing skills”? This makes all the difference. Dr Jordan Peterson puts it this way:
A bricklayer may question the utility of laying his bricks, monotonously, one after another. But perhaps he is not merely laying bricks. Maybe he is building a wall. And the wall is part of a building. And the building is a cathedral. And the purpose of the cathedral is the glorification of the Highest Good. And under such circumstances, every brick laid is an act that partakes of the divine. And if what you are doing in your day-to-day activity is not enough, then you are not aiming at the construction of a proper cathedral. And that is because you are not aiming high enough. Because if you were, then you would experience the sense of meaning in relationship to your sufficiently high goal, and it would justify the misery and limitations of your life. If you have something meaningful to pursue, then you are engrossed in life. You are on a meaningful path.
Our calling is more than a job, it’s a deep drive to use our lives to fulfil a broader meaning. And, that is usually broader than you’ll find in a single job spec (unless, of course, you create your own, in which case all power to you!).
IT’S A JOURNEY NOT A PROBLEM
When we think of our calling as only a job, then it can also lead us to switch off once we’ve found one that we find acceptable. We might narrow our vision, and close ourselves off to that call from deep within our being which is calling us to something more unique, more personal and more fulfilling than a single profession.
Robert Greene says: “Finally, you must see your career or vocational path more as a journey with twists and turns rather than a straight line.”
But I like to think that following our vocation is more like learning the piano, than fixing a problem. No one ever says: “I’ve finally finished learning the piano! Phew, I can check that off the list.” It’s a dynamic process of deepening internal and external mastery.
If we think of our calling as a problem that has been solved, then we’re likely to switch off and stop evolving.
Ken Robinson says “My life, like yours, is a constant process of improvisation between my interests and personality on the one hand and circumstances and opportunities on the other.” Finding your calling “means being open to new experiences and to exploring new paths and possibilities in yourself and in the world around you.”
It’s a constantly evolving journey.
Let’s finish with some words from Leonardo himself, to remind us why it’s worth going on the journey at all:
“As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well spent brings happy death.”
And my favourite:
“Life well spent is long.”
Godspeed,
T Mo
NEWS & LINKS
Some quotes were taken from Ken Robinson’s book Finding Your Element.
We’ve now got a new page on the Substack with our book reviews all in one place.
BOOKS ON PURPOSE WISHLIST
There’s now a new way to support us! Suggest a book to be reviewed in the comments, or even buy one of the books on our new wishlist. We’ll do our best to read it and squeeze all of the juice out of it that we can (and then tell you all about it of course!)