ARE YOU ON THE RIGHT PATH.....
I am constantly wondering if I am on the right path. Am I doing what I love? What is my purpose? You could go crazy thinking about all of that. But, I do know that persistent people usually find their inner peace and their place in life. Be a seeker. Keep diving into what you love. Keep spending time with the people that are important to you.
The whole "find your purpose" and "do what you love" quotes used to drive me crazy. It all seemed so abstract and I wanted a definitive answer that I was on the right path. Well....there are not a lot of definitives in the path of life. We use our experiences and values to guide our thoughts and decisions. We make mistakes. We get up and try again. Sometimes bad things happen. We work through them and overcome. Sometimes good things happen. We celebrate and are grateful for the experiences.
What I do know is, you can have a prosperous and fulfilling life and it usually involves taking yourself back to the basics. If you have a strong foundation in what you enjoy doing, then you can build on that. What I mean by basics is - do you enjoy being outdoors, working with your hands, connecting with others, creating things? Are you spiritual? Start out broad and work from there. If you love the outdoors, try a new outdoor activity. If you love cooking, take a class that will expand your horizons. Immerse yourself in a new experience but one that has the basic foundation that you are used to. I recently took a cookie decorating not class because I was invited by a friend. I love to bake, but aesthetically my creations are never that beautiful. I was amazed at how much I loved that class. I caught on quickly and I found the whole process extremely relaxing. My point is try something new once in awhile.
When I get stuck, I try to remember what I loved doing when I was younger or what do I do now if I have free time. How do I spend those days when I have control over the activities? Usually it involves reading, spending time with my family, and connecting with people in some way. I also love creating - whether that is in the form of writing, music, or a conversation with others. I feel at peace when I'm by the ocean. Those are my basics and from there is where I expand on the activities that I love.
I went into pharmacy because I loved working with, helping, and connecting with others. I liked science and math and I wanted to work in a field in health care. At the time, I really wanted to work for the FDA (I still do someday!). The good thing about pharmacy is that there are a lot of career paths open to you. I have worked with many disgruntled pharmacists. Pharmacists are high- functioning, detail-oriented individuals. Because of their perfectionist nature, I believe it is also hard to please them as employers. But, we all have to find our truth. So, keep learning, keep exploring and keep diving in - if you intuitively listen to what your body wants and needs, then you will always be doing what you love.