Love what you do…but how?

Confucius made it clear more than two thousand years ago: “Choose a job you love, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life”. It turns out that it is not easy as we keep reminding ourselves of the same phrase for centuries. Moreover, when we think about “the job we love,” selling is not necessarily at the top of our list. 

The question which remains unanswered is how do you love a job? (By the way, I am not talking about “follow your passion” nonsense.) Or let me rephrase the question…How can you love a job?

My answer is through learning. Some can argue that it is hard work. It is part of the process but hard work is no substitute for skilled execution. From a different point of view, we can also argue that learning itself is hard work.

It is not going to happen fast; it is a process. No matter which job you choose, you will grow progressively when you focus on learning, and your enjoyment level will increase. Therefore, your performance will improve. And if you start making enough money to live life without sacrificing none of those three (performance, learning, and enjoyment) then you will start loving your job.

Do not look for high-earning professions only. When you observe carefully, you can easily spot those people. It is the sales guy in your favorite hardware store who asks you many questions about how you repair your staff or the restaurant owner where you have your lunch, looking for your feedback each time he tries a new dish. Those people did not start doing those jobs by saying, “Hey, I would love to be a salesman in a hardware store or a small restaurant owner.” And even in high-earning jobs…who would say they want to be a tax lawyer because they love it?    

Let’s stop fantasizing about those scenarios where suddenly we fell in love with job. (exceptions prove the rule). We all find ourselves in different jobs and choose between learning, enjoying, and performing well, or just doing the job for the money.

And somehow, if you find yourself in selling (as a salesperson or a sales leader) and you would like to “love your job”, you can start looking for the answer to the following question « What kind of learning in your job you think, will bring you both enjoyment and performance? »

PS: Performance, Learning, Enjoyment triangle is a concept created by Tim Galwey in his book “The Inner Game of Tennis”