I spoke with someone this week about the tough spot he’s in with his career.
The old chapter is done. The next move isn’t clear.
He’s fine on money for a while, but he’s getting antsy.
He wants direction. He wants to make a difference.
He knows this next thing won’t be just “another job.” It’ll be a calling.
He’ll be passionate about it. He’ll pour himself into it. It’ll be amazing.
He just doesn’t know what it is yet.
And so he’s stalled. Stuck. Can’t move.
Feeling doubt, frustration, impatience, uncertainty.
Can’t this new thing show up already??
***
Oh, brother. I feel you. I get it.
This is the discomfort that comes from committing to a soul business.
A soul business ties closely to your Zone of Genius. It’s something you’re uniquely compelled and inspired to do in the world.
It’s often something people turn to after success in more conventional work…success they found didn’t actually satisfy them.
Now they’re ready for a deeper cut at contribution.
To burst forth in all the glory of their uncompromising truth, devoted to that which they most care about, in a way that is uniquely theirs.
They’re done with achieving for the sake of it, with hollow hustle, with bullshit and rat races.
They hear a whisper on the wind and sense a beautiful possibility.
A soul business is a glorious thing.
It’s also a bit like a wild animal.
You catch a glimpse of it through the trees in the moonlight, then it’s gone again.
It won’t follow your schedule.
It won’t move in straight lines.
In order not to squish the soulfulness out of it, you can’t approach in the same command-and-control way you achieved everything else in your life.
You have to court it.
Seduce it.
Dance with it.
Trust the mystery that stirred the longing in the first place.
Nurture it without demanding that it be comfortable to your ego’s need for control.
In other words, a soul business is likely gonna make you wait.
For what? Who knows.
For the stars to align. For synchronicity to click into place. For luck to bloom.
For the perfect business name to float up during meditation.
For the exact right person to sit beside you on the train.
For an acquaintance to send you a link that changes everything.
For the mystery to call you forth, in other words.
This is what my friend is discovering.
You can’t rush the mystery. You can’t push the river.
So what does an overfunctioning hyperachiever do in a time like this?
Get better at being uncomfortable.
Take hell-yes opportunities as they come.
Tune into breadcrumbs. Let them not make sense.
Let yourself die to everything you thought you knew and be willing to rise unrecognizable from the ashes.
Little things like that.
And if your mind needs a project, go sit by a creek and journal through this list of questions I created for you.
This is a time for trustfulness and wonder.
Let yourself soften and ripen.
Surrender to what you don’t—and can’t—understand.
Your deadlines and spreadsheets and goal-setting and KPIs aren’t going anywhere. You’ll get to pick them back up when the time is right.
But for now, if you feel a soul business stirring, just breathe.
Wonder.
Listen.
Pray.
Oh, and enjoy the heck out of your life in the meantime.
Soulfully yours,
Rachel
PS – Here’s that set of journal prompts I mentioned: 15 Questions to Ask While Your Soul Business Gestates. If you try them, let me know what comes up.
PPS – Want some help reading the tea leaves (metaphorically speaking)? You weren’t meant to figure it all out alone. I’ll help you tune into presence, learn to do things differently, and create a life full of more freedom and satisfaction than you ever let yourself believe you could really truly have. Just hit reply and we’ll schedule a free consult.
