| Scott Dinsmore and his wife |
Photo: From Live Your Legend
I was flicking through some TEDx videos to find some inspiration when I found this video of Scott Dinsmore, founder of Live Your Legend. The 33-year-old gave a very important and inspiring talk about how to find work you love - something I've personally been struggling with for a few years now.
While I do [kind of] love what I do and the things that come with it, there is still a feeling of emptiness in my daily work life. It is so much easier to say "find the job you really enjoy" or "find what you think is fun and you'll never have to worry about work ever". Frankly, only a few people are lucky to turn their passion into something profitable. For most of us, needs and responsibilities dictate the course of our actions in our professional lives. So how do we marry these two goals?
After watching the video, I found out the three important things you need in order to find the solution to this problem. First, you must find your unique strengths. Know thy self before answering the question "What should I really do in order to be happy?"
Second, stick to your values. Values make up your entire self. These are things you won't trade for fame or a big paycheck. Come to think of it, some people are miserable in their jobs because they feel like they "sold their souls to the devil". Something just doesn't feel right. They gave up their values and traded it for something they thought would make them happy.
Third, mark your experiences. A very powerful message Scott mentioned in this video is making sure you list down the qualities of the person you look up to or aspire to be like.
Last and perhaps the most important thing from Scott: surround yourself with passionate people. Connect with people who are relentlessly aiming for success in life. Stick to your miserable, sad little group and you'll end up sharing sob stories and workplace nightmares over cold coffee.
The last one may be pretty hard to attain though, especially when you're stuck in a situation where you can't quit your job because you have no alternative yet (operative word: YET). The trick is to change your surroundings. Instill a culture that avoids all sorts of negative behavior towards work. Be the force of change and stop complaining about work.
One quote Scott showed during his TEDx talk says, "You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with." - Jim Rohn. That is such a revealing statement! It is also such a sad realization. Whatever thoughts I have right now about what I do and my position in life have somewhat been influenced by the people I constantly interact with. So Scott said: "Don't change your goals. Change your surroundings!"
Sadly, we will never get to hear more inspiring words from Scott Dinsmore. The Daily Mail reported that he was struck and killed by a boulder while climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with his wife during their adventure around the world. We lost a great and inspiring soul - but his message, through this video I would like to share with all of you, will be heard for many years to come. I hope it will help all of us find meaning in what we do, and eventually, find work we all love.
