Are you moving forward?

Have you ever had a dream that you felt was a message for you?

One night I had a dream like that. In my dream, I was at school and had just picked up a new picture id. Before I went home, I stopped at the cafeteria to eat. I filled my tray with food and stepped up to the cashier when I discovered I lost my wallet. My money, my credit cards, my driver’s license, and my new picture id were all gone. I started to worry.

I told the cashier I lost my wallet, so she asked to see my id instead of paying cash. I explained that my id was in my wallet, which was lost. The cashier wouldn’t let me through without either paying, or showing her my new picture id. I panicked. I frantically searched everywhere in the cafeteria for my wallet. I remembered having my wallet with me when I started putting food on my tray. It had to be here, so I retraced all my steps, looking in every direction.

I asked everyone I saw, “Have you seen my wallet?” I asked the other cafeteria workers for help. I even tried to borrow money from other people in line. No one could help me. I felt lost.

I went back to the cashier, but she just kept asking for my id or my payment. I wasn’t allowed to leave. I was stuck in the cafeteria, unidentifiable without an id. I felt frustrated, trapped, and hopeless.

In desperation, I finally asked the cashier, “Why can’t I go anywhere?” She replied, “If you can’t show me who you are, then you don’t know who you are. And if you don’t know who you are, you can’t move on.”

That’s when I woke up.

The message for me was this: If you don’t know or can’t express who you are, what you want, and what you offer, then you can’t really go anywhere.

I used to keep hoping that things would somehow just work out, that the right job or career would just show up. Then I tried running from person to person hoping they had the answer for me. In my case, that was when I moved from job to job and company to company, hoping each one would finally be the job that I would love.

Then I discovered a much better way: find out who you are, what you offer, and what you love to do. Then you can move forward, transforming your career and landing a job you do well and truly enjoy.

What has been your biggest discovery along the path of finding a job and career you love? Would you share it with me on my blog?