From our freshman year in high school we’re told to start thinking about what we’d like to do. Everyone has high hopes at first – we flash back to our (long-lost) childhood ambitions and think, “My parents did always tell me I could be whatever I wanted to be. I really have always wanted to be a veterinarian/doctor/lawyer”… But then we learn the cold, hard truth of the matter – that it’s going to take another 5-10 years of hard work to get a serious degree in that field – so we opt for something a bit less difficult with a still-acceptable monetary compensation. Maybe we aim for whatever the US Bureau of Labor Statistics says is the highest paying, most in-demand position that year. Maybe we just don’t know what we want to do and flounder until we’re almost out of college, selecting the most generic courses to cover the most bases.

There are those who know what they want to do right away in life and are not afraid to pursue it. They schedule the trip and the stops along the way and it goes pretty much like they plan it. Then there are those who think they know what they want to do, but after going in that direction awhile, realize they’re going the wrong way and are left feeling unfulfilled. Then there are people who have no idea where they’re going or what to do on the trip, so they borrow someone else’s trip ticket. They blindfold themselves and stick a pin in the map – and never find out what exactly it is that they want to do. So dreams don’t get realized, sometimes indefinitely, and usually in exchange for the almighty dollar.

So, what’s your trip been like? Do you know where you’re going and what you want to do? How can you know it? Here’s the simple answer: do the thing you love. You know what that thing is when you realize what it is that you do best. The gift each one of us has will manifest itself in how we do whatever we do. When you find you’re really good at something, you’ll realize you also really love it. And if you love it, you’ll also be really good at it, because it’s your passion. What better way to feel fulfilled and impact the world positively than to share your gift with others?

Sometimes it takes time to realize what our gifts are and when we finally do figure it out, we might feel like it’s too late to transform it into a career. We’d rather keep going than turn the car around and backtrack 1600 miles in the pursuit of a new destination. My suggestion to you is that it’s never too late to change your mind. If you’d planned a trip from New York to Florida and realized halfway there that it had always been a dream of yours to see Sedona, what would stop you from just going ahead and changing your plans? Time? Money? Is it possible that those were the same factors that led you to choose a less meaningful destination in the first place? Ask yourself this – in the end, how will those factors really add up in comparison to the reward of doing what you truly love while sharing your gift with the world?

What is it you do well? Do what you do. And love it.