When you were young, is what you’re doing now for a living what you envisioned?

It seems like a fairly straight forward question.

However, how you make your living, actually goes beyond being merely content with what you are doing. What I really want to know is whether or not your current job or position is empowering you to be all you can be in terms of cultivating and developing your true talents or calling.

I know that this may sound like an overarching, perhaps even dramatic question. After all, why poke the alligators with unnecessarily deep queries, especially if you are comfortable within your current circumstances?

So before you respond, take a moment to consider the following . . . when you were young, and all things were still possible, how did you feel?

Did you feel a combination of excitement and freedom? Did you possess an unencumbered perception of the possibilities that laid before you?

Back then, I bet that nothing was out of the question, and everything was likely within your reach.

I know when you get older, your youthful enthusiasms are replaced by a more “realistic” and “practical” understanding of your capabilities, and what you can and cannot do in the real world. It is all a part of growing up and becoming a responsible adult.

Unfortunately, a side effect of this necessary maturation process is that most people lose their ability to still dream – to seek out their own unique talents and capabilities, and align their working life with who they really are, and what they really want to do and CAN DO!

I m not suggesting that you chuck it all and pick-up your old backpack to travel across country . . . unless that’s on your bucket list.

What I am talking about, is recapturing a youthful enthusiasm and passion for what you currently do.

Is that possible? Can you within your present role – with your current company, leverage your unique talents and abilities to their fullest potential? Is it still possible to ignite an enthusiastic spark of endless possibilities and real and enduring personal satisfaction?

If your answer is yes, then congratulations. Keep doing what you are doing, because it is obviously working for you.

If your answer is no, or you are not sure, then you have to decide if it is the career or the company (or both) that need to be changed?

Take the following quiz to find out, and then check your score results to determine what course of action you can take to live the life you envisioned . . . the life you deserve.

1. If you could go back and choose another profession or career path, would you?
2. Do you often times feel that your true talents and abilities are not being utilized to their fullest potential?
3. Do you frequently feel like you are stuck in neutral in terms of being neither happy nor unhappy with your present job?
4. If you had all the money in the world and could do anything you wanted, would you do something different?
5. Do you execute your daily tasks out of a sense of responsibility and duty, as opposed to being energized and excited about each new undertaking?
6.  If you could easily and seamlessly move to a different company tomorrow doing the same job, would you?

If you answered YES to the first 5 questions and no to question 6, then you need to look at making a career change.

If you answered NO to the first 5 questions and yes to question 6, then you don’t need a new career – you need a new company.

Regardless, it is important for you to step back from time to time to do a personal inventory, as you are in a state of career limbo.

In the end, you and only you, can determine whether or not you have compromised your talents and potential. If you have, you may be paying the bills buy not tapping into your unique abilities or being fulfilled. To quote Jimmy Dean, “I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.”

So tell me, do you want something more, and what are you prepared to do about it?