5 hard years or 50 boring as hell

For me, a good working life begins with finding out what makes you happy and making a plan. You can put in some hard years along the way or stay on a treadmill without direction. That’s the difference I want to talk about.

How does work become something you actually want to do?

I’m sitting in Dinero’s office answering emails. One is from Simon, who’s read my book Fra led til leder. He’s noticed that I describe my work as something that feels more like a hobby than a job.

His question is actually very simple: How the hell do you get there? And have I always felt that way?

No. I certainly haven’t.

A good working life: What do you want from it?

You can look at work in different ways. Some people find a job, earn money and build a life around it. Work pays for the spare time when they pursue their interests and spend time with family. That’s fine.

I’m one of those who wants work itself to be an exciting part of life too. We spend a lot of hours on it. So I want to spend those hours on something that interests me.

It starts with getting to know yourself. What makes a day good? What makes it bad? What do you enjoy doing?

For one person, it’s helping others. For another, it’s creating a company. A third might dream of managing lots of employees. It differs from person to person.

You can rarely jump straight to the goal

The annoying thing is that once you find out what you want, it isn’t necessarily something you can start tomorrow.

If helping others matters most, volunteering may give you an opportunity straight away. But many goals require you to work your way towards them.

If you want your own company, you need to take a chance and work hard. It can be really tough before you get your head above water. If you want to manage a large group of people, that isn’t something you can just go out and become either.

So you need a plan. And the path will usually include something you don’t particularly want to do.

I’ve done plenty of things I didn’t enjoy too

When my work and private life blend together today, it’s because I’m in a good place in my life. I do what I want, and I love both.

But I certainly didn’t enjoy everything that came before. I found school boring. I’ve spent a little time in upper secondary school and business school. I’ve worked as a dishwasher and taxi driver and served in the Royal Life Guards.

It wasn’t as though I always had a completely clear plan either. At times, I didn’t really know what I wanted. I tried things out. When I was in the military, part of the reason was that I wanted to become a police officer. That didn’t happen.

But for much of my adult life, I’ve had a vision of where I wanted to go. I haven’t smiled through every single task. But I could be happy overall because I knew I was on my way.

The hard work is easier to understand when it has a purpose

I’ve worked hard for quite a few years to reach a place where I can do what I want. Where I have the financial freedom to take exciting trips and have the experiences I want. And where I’m not unnecessarily dependent on others.

Even when something has been hard or dirty, I’ve been able to see the point. It was a step towards the life I wanted.

That’s different from staying on a treadmill without knowing where it’s supposed to lead. If you don’t particularly enjoy your work and don’t have a plan either, I understand why it seems strange when I say my work feels like a hobby.

Work out what it takes for you

So my answer to Simon is: Look inward. Find out what would make you smile. What would need to change before you felt that way about your work?

And then make a plan to get there.

It may cost three, five or seven years of sacrifices and hard work. That doesn’t guarantee everything afterwards will be easy. But there’s a difference between slogging away without direction and working for something you’ve chosen yourself.

You can stay on a treadmill that may not be particularly unpleasant but isn’t particularly interesting either. Or you can put in the months and years it takes to try to create a life that suits you better.

Find out who you are. Find out what makes you happy. Make a plan and grit your teeth along the way.

You can find more of my advice on creating a life that suits you in Skab din egen succes.

You fucking choose.