Author : Anita Web Weaver

We all remember the children’s story of the Ugly Duckling The poor thing was so awkward and big, so unlike his duckling brothers and sisters But one day he had become a large, graceful, beautiful swan, admired by all who saw him

In his book on work called, “Crossing the Unknown Sea,” poet David Whyte had a friend tell him once, “the swan doesn’t cure his awkwardness by beating himself on the back or by trying to move faster He does it by moving toward the elemental water where he belongs ”

What does this mean for us?

I think it means that if we allow ourselves to be drawn by that which we are naturally attracted to, we stop struggling and we become who we most naturally are In terms of career satisfaction, it simply means we now have a career path

But that career path, like the element water, is a fluid, changing thing For example, I started out my career as an elementary teacher I am now a speaker, coach and author

How did that happen? It’s not like I planned a career path that led me to where I am now It’s that I kept following that which I was drawn to – what, at the time, gave me the most sense of engaging in meaningful work

I have met many Swans who saw themselves as Ugly Ducklings

I saw them beat themselves up for not fitting in, for needing to do better, for needing to be different in their work environment When I saw that kind of self-flagellation going on, I suspected that the person was not in their ‘element’ So, of course, they looked awkward and out of place

They may also have been, sorry to say, criticized and judged negatively by their colleagues and supervisors Needless to say, any sort of career satisfaction was totally missing as well

I learned this lesson in a vivid way some years ago

I once had a secretary who just wasn’t doing the job I hired her for I needed her to be a project manager for multiple projects our organization had going on But many of the tasks weren’t getting done

In my frustration, I called a friend in Human Resources and asked to talk about the situation As he asked questions, we both came to the realization that what she loved doing (and was very good at) was typing! She was fast and accurate and just loved seeing those pages of copy get turned into reports or whatever else was needed

She didn’t like the detail of managing projects Period

She and I had a talk and we agreed the job I had was not a good fit for her She wasn’t experiencing any sense of work purpose, based on her needs and desires

I helped her get placed in a law firm where she had all the typing she could handle And I hired a new secretary, making sure I better assessed her career fit for the job I had available

If we are in a position in an organization and we are feeling tired and ‘burned out’, our exhaustion might be because the job we are doing has nothing to do with who we really are, or what our talents and skills want to express in the world In other words, we are exhausted from not expressing enough from our heart, from the essence of who we are We’re being used up without feeling deep work satisfaction from having meaningful work

Remember, the work might be meaningful to many others, but if it isn’t meaningful or satisfying to you, then you might be better off finding the ‘elemental waters’ of your own life Once you experience real work satisfaction; once you know the value of work for YOU, your exhaustion will leave That is because you will fully expressing who you are

When we are fully expressing ourselves in meaningful work, we are creative When we are creative, time flies; we are engaged And the only tiredness we might experience comes from the deep satisfaction of a job well done, and a life purpose well-expressed

If you feel stuck in the mud of your work, try to discover what it is you love about your work Or, if not the work you are doing now, meaningful work you might want to be doing

I assure you, your career path, your meaningful work is seeking you just as much as you are seeking it And you will not be happy until you are in your right element

Anita Web Weaver is the owner of Design to Shine Consulting, offering coaching, mentoring and speaking services to help people shine, no matter what, in their career, their life and their health.

Get her FREE Special Report here: 9 Golden Nuggets To Help You Get Your Dream Career at Any Age

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