Employment Epiphany

Those of you who have followed my blog for any amount of time know I have been struggling with the “what do I want to do with my life” question for some time; it’s why I helped to pull together the Purpose Party two and a half years ago.

At that time, I was convinced that I still wanted to teach. However, several attempts at training and teaching and mentoring just didn’t feel right. I was lost again.

I thought maybe I wanted to write but I write painfully slowly most of the time and that didn’t seem like a great plan for a career.

Very recently, a succession of discussions with different people led to an epiphany — or rather a couple of connected epiphanies. First, I was going about the whole purpose thing backwards; I needed to figure out the core of what I love to do, and the reason it resonates then seek or build a career around that core. Second, I figured out the core.

What I love to do, what I really enjoy is getting people the information they need.

Matching information needs with useful, clear information is what I love most about working in libraries. I even love getting people info they never knew they needed. Researching and presenting information is what I loved about school and academic studies. For years, I have  enjoyed writing detailed instructions for staff to follow to ensure consistency in library procedures (and to make my own job more transparent), and for Those DeWolfes Creative clients to help them understand manage the sites we have built — this is the part of teaching and instruction that I enjoy.

It’s why I enjoy volunteering as the Communications Chair for my Union local and why I have championed clear language (a.k.a plain language) initiatives as well as information literacy. It’s what I love about the “information wants to be free” world we live in. It’s how I use social media and one of the reasons I blog and why I briefly toyed with being an “information broker” before Google killed that profession. Information is at the heart of my triviaqueen nickname.

I know that there is still a mighty need for the skills I have… so, as I posed in the still-barely-active Purpose Party group on Facebook,

How can I make that the core of my dream job or build my dream job around it?

I know that Those DeWolfes Creative could be a home for whatever job I create under this banner. I know, too, that I have to first put aside all thoughts of clients vs. contracts vs. what ever other delivery option might be needed and basically write a job description. But before I do that, I think it might be useful to list my skills — what exactly is in my info-dream-job toolbox? I’ve alluded to some of those skills above but definitely need to list and re-frame them.

I’m not walking away from the University just yet, but if I want to do what I love, I think it is time to look outside the Ring road. If you know of job descriptions (not necessarily openings, but descriptions) that you think match what I am looking at doing, would you send them my way? And if you want to sit and chat about where you think my strengths (or weaknesses) are, I’d be grateful for the feedback.

I don’t think we have an endless number of reboot options with our lives, but I think my opportunity to shift is right around the corner.

Photo credit: Eduardo Loureiro, Flickr. Used under CCBYSA license.