Learn what a calling is and how to find yours

Wake, work, sleep, repeat. While you might enjoy your daily routine, cruising comfortably can get tiring, and one day you might find yourself feeling stuck.

It’s normal to lose a bit of passion for your work after a while, but there’s also a chance you never felt that excited in the first place. Maybe you took over a family business out of obligation or chose a major because your friends were studying it. But if you’re struggling to find direction and wondering what your calling is, it’s never too late to find out.

What's a calling?

A calling is a pull toward something you feel uniquely qualified to do and enjoy passionately. Some act out “God’s calling,” like becoming a missionary, while others pursue professional callings, like becoming an Olympic skater. In every situation, you’ll experience a strong inclination to use your talents to find meaning in life and make an impact on others.

Maybe you’ve loved animals since childhood and always handled them well. If you feel happiest around them and filled with purpose, your calling likely relates to working with animals. You might feel especially fulfilled working as a veterinarian, in a shelter with rescues, or at a local pet store. 

These careers will feel “right” to you in that the path forward seems obvious and aligns well with both your values and abilities. Something just clicks. Your sense of purpose and meaning come into focus and your world makes more sense, creating an urgency to follow a specific way of life or work.

A calling isn’t a lighthearted interest, either. Interests can be fleeting or change over time, but a calling cultivates purpose that transcends personal preferences or immediate gratification. It’s something that connects you with a greater purpose, one that’s typically outside yourself. This calling becomes a core part of who you are and what you feel you can give to the world. 

Why should you pursue your calling? 

When you find your work meaningful, you’re more satisfied with it. And employees who place a high value on meaningful work tend to be more successful in their careers.

Callings also concern things you feel passionate about, and this engagement and excitement can greatly improve your mental and physical health. Actualizing your calling is even linked to greater life satisfaction. 

Finding your calling

A calling is just that: something that calls out to you. So the best way to find it is to subject yourself to various activities and experiences. 

To narrow down the options, brainstorm activities you enjoy. Note how you feel when doing these things and whether you can define a purpose greater than yourself. You might enjoy baking, but if there isn’t a sense that this activity is what you’re meant to do with your life and that it contributes something you think is valuable to the world, then this is likely a hobby, not a calling.

Another way to narrow down “the call” is to consider an activity you can’t not do. If you can’t imagine your life without volunteering at the local shelter, helping the homeless might be your calling.

To assist your brainstorming, here are a few careers people tend to find fulfilling and purpose-driven: 

• Social worker (foster care worker, marriage counseling, rehabilitation)

• Healthcare professional (nurse, paramedic, or doctor)

• Community-oriented worker (firefighter, public service officer)

• Youth care professional (sexual health educator, school counselor) 

• Justice warrior (lawyer, judge, paralegal)

Are you already pursuing your calling?

Dr. Wrzesniewski, an associate professor of organizational behavior at Yale University, defined three orientations you can have toward your work: job, career, and calling.

Job orientation

You enjoy your job but see it as more of a stepping stone to something better or a stop-gap to meet a current need. Either way, your job achieves something finite and concrete, like paying your bills, creating a certain lifestyle, or supporting your family.

And, while your job maintains your financial wellness, you’re probably not married to it. You also might not feel your work is valuable outside of fulfilling company goals.

Career orientation

You see your employment as more than a means to an end. You’re motivated to succeed and achieve particular results and view your employment as part of a path that leads you higher in the ranks.

As you supplement your roles and responsibilities with self-directed learning or by gaining new skills, you increase your likelihood of climbing up the career ladder.

Over time, your actions result in raises, more responsibilities, and higher seniority. But just because you have a great career doesn’t mean you enjoy or are fulfilled by it. Even success can feel like a grind.

Calling orientation

Your work aligns with your values and speaks to something more profound. You get a lot of enjoyment out of what you do and feel fulfilled at the end of the day. There’s no rush to finish your workday, and you often continue working after hours. 

Job, career, or calling?

Because a calling brings passion and meaning into your life, it’s often something you pursue professionally. This allows you to spend more time on an activity you love to give your life purpose. 

But you don’t have to turn your calling into a job or career. And neither a job nor career must align with your core values or give you a sense of purpose. 

That said, most people spend 1/3 of their life working. Making your calling your profession is one way of filling more of your time doing something that aligns with your values and is meaningful and enjoyable.

To determine your orientation, ask yourself the following questions: 

• What do I find the most meaningful about my work? Do I find it meaningful at all?

• At the end of the day, how do I feel about my work? Am I emotionally satisfied or bored?

• Would I be working here if I didn’t need the money?

• Am I satisfied with where I am now, or do I want to learn new things and experience growth?

Final tips

It takes a lot of work to pursue your calling. It’s no easy task to find the meaning of life. Here are a few tips to make it easier:

• This search is bigger than you: Finding your calling might feel like self-centered work, but doing something that makes you happy and the world a better place is selfless. When you improve your well-being, you have more love and energy to give to everyone else. 

• But don’t forget about yourself, either: Because helping others can add a lot of meaning to your life, it’s activities like these that often become a calling. But don’t forget to take care of yourself, too. If you’re called to social work, for example, remember to protect yourself from toxic empathy and practice self-compassion to avoid burning out. 

• Talk to friends and family members: When brainstorming your calling, ask trusted loved ones what they think. Maybe your mother remembers you always had an affinity for numbers as a kid, for example, or a friend points out how happy you seem when outdoors. 

• Find an accountability partner: Depending on what your calling is, pursuing it might not be easy — especially if you’re changing careers later on in life. Ask a friend, family member, or mentor to check on your progress to ensure you stay on the right path. 

• Don’t stress too much over it: While you can do some brainstorming and try out activities to find your true calling, you never know how you’ll hear the call. And pursuing something so meaningful shouldn’t be stressful, so don’t worry too much if you’re not sure what yours is — it’ll come. 

Love what you do

The path to finding one’s calling is rarely straightforward. It takes time, energy, and patience. Most importantly, it takes introspection.

But determining what your calling is, means finding something you love that lets you be your most authentic self. If you can find this authenticity at work, that’s amazing — but not necessary. Feel free to explore your purpose how you see fit. That’s how it’ll remain enjoyable and meaningful, anyway.