I'm a firm believer that our dreams and goals are nothing random. They speak for a part within ourselves - what our soul is craving. And very often our dreams overlap with our talents and skills. That's the best case scenario.
In the past I always worked in jobs I never wanted to work in at the first place. They just happened. Those jobs were the only things the conservative German job market had to offer for me. And those jobs burned me out and made me sick physically and emotionally.
For a long time I worked as a freelance language teacher for a company from the US. This job had may downsides as well but it was still the only job I was able to keep for more than 7 years and in the beginning I also really loved it - despite working a lot while earning very little after being taxed into oblivion.
I was working with expats from all over the world and helped them navigate through life in a new country besides being their language teacher. And I was told many times that I am an excellent coach and teacher. I learned a lot through this work.
But still, it also was one of those jobs 'that just happened' and the price I paid for it was a high. Lots of people pleasing, only earning money when actually working. Not earning at all when sick or taking a week of vacation. And being seen by the government as there personal ATM to cash cow like there's no tomorrow. To pay taxes on money I had not even earned yet. To pay double the amount for health insurance just because of not working as an employee.
In the end I left this job because no more students were sent to me. First I was sad but later on I saw it as a chance to finally figure out what I really wanna do with my life on a professional level.
I have always loved writing and creating art and design. But for a short term I offered branding and graphic design services and I hated working with clients who have absolutely no clue about design and then wanted me to design things for them that I felt ashamed for afterwards. So, no thanks.
So my conclusion was to create products instead of services instead and to open an online-shop with my own designs. Truth is, I have been wanting to do that ever since 2019 or so but at that time I was so busy with teaching, that I had no time for it. Also I was too afraid of the German bureaucracy hell that comes with opening and registering a shop. Now I don't give a fuck anymore since I will leave Germany anyways once that shop generates a good monthly income.
So you see how it is very often fear holding us back while we know and feel deep down in our hearts what we truly want. Like I did with my shop for a long time already. But it took the loss of my freelance job, a major burnout, extreme government overreach for many years while freelancing until I finally dared to take that step.
And here I am now, working on my shop every day. Sometimes I even spend 12 hours working on it and the crazy thing is, this work fulfills me instead of burning me out. It truly makes me happy.
Also it's the first time that I can combine all my skills and talents into one thing: my dark humor, my design skills, typography design, illustration, copywriting and storytelling, email marketing and social media marketing. And it has some therapeutic effects on me as well since I now translate all my experienced bureaucratic trauma and the governmental harassment I've been dealing with for a decade, all of that now gets translated into fun products.
So I am a firm believer that it's something you owe yourself to follow your calling and your dreams. I realize how my physical and emotional wellbeing has been improving ever since I followed my calling with the online-shop. I'm not the one to tell you what to do and what not to do but if you have a dream that has been there for a long time then I'd say it's absolutely worth to follow that calling. I believe you can only win.
Will you follow your inner calling or have you already done so?
Share with me - I'm always keen to read your responses.
Love,
Phyllis
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