How to find your passions?

[undercover]

I'm quitting my job. It doesn't interest me anymore and I don't need it. In fact, I don't even need another job. The problem is, I don't know what I'm going to be doing. I don't like many things other than wasting time on the computer and walking/biking. I'm too young to be so burnt out and don't know how to re-ignite my passion for living and finding things I want to do. I'm hoping being away from a job I don't like will ultimately lead me to better things.

So where do you start when no career path truly interests you? I don't need the money necessarily but I think I need to develop a resume while I'm young instead of taking critical time off. I have a BS in MIS which is the most useless degree for someone with zero experience I've learned. I digress. I'm open to anything at this point because the things I thought I would like doing I really wouldn't. Programming, design, systems analyst work...none of it interests me anymore. And I'm not a people person.

[Cwadda]

Between this topic and the wedding commitment one honestly you sound like you're completely miserable. Seems to me it's deeper-rooted than just a career.

How do you feel?

[NeonPegasus]

My stepdad gave me some great advice - he said it's not enough to find a hobby; you have to find something to do that helps others. I would look at your skills and find a way to use them to help. For instance, one person put together a website/program that people can use in the event of a disaster to connect with loved ones. And if there's a field you want to get into but can't for lack of experience, volunteer to do that job for free. Then you can gain experience and parlay that into a paying gig later.

[mozar]

For me the whole idea of having a "passion" doesn't work. I'm not interested in helping other people either. A few years ago I took off 6 months to find my passion. I didn't find anything. So I found a job similar to what I was doing before. In hindsight I realized that I had been burnt out from working 80 hours a week fr the previous 2 years.
So take a break for awhile. After a few months you'll probably start to feel better. You might not find a passion per se, but you will be able to think more clearly. And if you want to go the passion route, consider what excites you. But what excites you might not be a money spigot and that's OK. For me my passions are cooking complicated meals for myself, eating food from my garden, and making up words to songs.

[forummm]

People always say "follow your passion". I have always been skeptical of that. I think it's great if you can find it and it pays well. But my passions are playing with spreadsheets to explore ideas that I have and things I think are interesting, learning about new stuff on topics I choose (and the topic changes a couple times a year), etc. So far it's been hard for me to see how to turn that into money.

That's why I like the idea of being FIRE. I can follow my passions, even if they aren't lucrative. I feel like my advice to my future children will be 1) do something you to make enough money that you like enough so you can get to FIRE, and 2) then you can follow your passion once you're FIRE.

[Exhale]

I'm quitting my job. It doesn't interest me anymore and I don't need it. In fact, I don't even need another job...So where do you start when no career path truly interests you?

Books that have helped me:
- Artist's Way (fairly touchy-feely, but if you ignore all that and focus on digging into the exercises they usually yield some solid home truths)
- Quiet: The Hidden Power of Introverts
- Artist's Way at Work (I'm working through this right now)
- So Good They Can't Ignore You
- A Whole New Mind
- Willpower Instinct (check out the section on envisioning/communicating with your future self)

When I've been in a similar situation, I remind myself that times of not knowing are a part of a life cycle. It's part of the path to entering a new life stage, gaining new knowledge...

[zolotiyeruki]

I find myself wasting lots of time on the computer as well.  I've found that at the end of the day, I often so tired that I don't have the energy to pursue things I really enjoy.

Here's something I've done which has helped:  I started getting up an hour earlier in the day.  That way I have energy and time to do the things *I* want to do.  And some things have become of greater interest as a result.

I wonder if taking some time off work will help you get a better idea of what you want to do.

[bacchi]

My passion is wasting time on the computer.

Take some time off and be easy on yourself about it. It's hard to discover anything when you're slogging away at a 9-5.

[retireatbirth]

People always say "follow your passion". I have always been skeptical of that. I think it's great if you can find it and it pays well. But my passions are playing with spreadsheets to explore ideas that I have and things I think are interesting, learning about new stuff on topics I choose (and the topic changes a couple times a year), etc. So far it's been hard for me to see how to turn that into money.

That's why I like the idea of being FIRE. I can follow my passions, even if they aren't lucrative. I feel like my advice to my future children will be 1) do something you to make enough money that you like enough so you can get to FIRE, and 2) then you can follow your passion once you're FIRE.

I second this. I wish I hadn't wasted my 20s bouncing around looking for a career I was passionate about. It's better to just stash your dough while you're in these rote junior positions so by the time you get up to political mid and higher level positions you can say good bye to the whole thing.

[Kiwi Mustache]

I tried to answer this question from the age of 21 to 24.

I had no idea what I wanted to do. I went to career coaches, read books on the topic, listened to motivational clips on Youtube, etc.

Then when I was 24 I read a book called "So good they can't ignore you"

This flipped my thinking completely upside down. It basically went on to say that if you ask people what they are passionate about, they will tell you, swimming, cycling, taking my dog to the park and eating Mexican with friends. These passions are not going to make a career. I highly recommend you read the book, it basically changed the way I look at my career.

In terms of finding new things I'm "passionate" about outside of work. I just went out there and tried them. I joined a hiking club, went to night school classes on cooking, took archery lessons, tried out skiing, got into road cycling, joined a property investment association. I didn't know these were my passions when I first tried them out, in fact I was very hesitant to. But these are now my passions and I wouldn't have found them sitting at home. You almost have to put yourself in uncomfortable situations to help yourself grow, develop and explore as a person.