I left school unable to go to university.

I didn’t make the grade.

I started wandering the streets, was in and out of employment agencies and was clueless about where and how I could get work. I didn’t know how to do anything and school hadn’t taught me skills for the corporate world.

I left my home in Scotland for Los Angeles, to work for an English millionaire. He was an uneducated truck driver who couldn’t read or write, but knew how to make a buck in the oil industry. My job was as a nanny for his two boys, aged seven and nine.

I spent the following years trying many jobs, both home and abroad, both paid and voluntary, including being a D.J. for hospital radio in Europe, delivering large bags of ice to oil refineries in Texas, traveling the U.S. catering for large weddings and selling industrial vacuums to the oil industry in Norway.

At age 32, I finally found the work I loved.

I started my own company with two other women, coaching leaders in the oil industry about how to create organizations that were great for all the employees, not just great for the few at the top.

Here’s what I learned over the last 15 years about how to find the work we love.

1) If you haven’t found the work you love yet, use every day in the job you’re working now to discover more about who you are and your capabilities.

2) Before accepting a job, take the energy of the job offer, all the way into your body. Your body will guide you to a clear “yes” or “no.”

3) Avoid the cultural bad press about “job hopping” by being someone who finds a way to add value to all employers, no matter the duration of the job.

4) Be willing to work in lots of different locations and cultures. This will expose you to more opportunities to find your passion.

Additional Insights and Learnings:

There were key people who made huge contributions in helping me find the work I loved.

At age 18, a head hunter helped me build my confidence and core skill base. She said, “You would be really good at sales. Go get a job at the local newspaper. They will put you through their sales training, the best in the country, and then you can take those skills anywhere.”

I did.

We will get lots of advice and pointers from all directions. Listen for the advice that really resonates and will give you a great return for your investment of time and effort.

I lived my passion for 10 years and made enough money to retire. I am enjoying the heck out of retirement and learning like crazy.

But now, it’s time to find the work I love. I can’t wait, and yet there is no waiting as each day is full of new things to explore. I trust I will get to my next career, right on time.

~

Author: Moe Bruce

Image: elephant media library

Editors: Ashleigh Hitchcock; Emily Bartran