“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.” — Steve Jobs

I’m sure you know at least one person in your life who pretty much had their career and life path figured out since they were kids.

They got their sights on becoming a lawyer, doctor, nurse, or engineer, and followed a fixed path to their dream careers. Fast forward to today, are now pretty much “set” for life.

Well, most of us aren’t as fortunate…

Though we’ve all had childhood ‘dream’ jobs, as we grew up and learn more about ourselves, we found out that perhaps that cool job we envisioned having as a kid isn’t what we actually wanted to do.

Many of us are left dazed and confused trying to figure out what it is that we are meant to do with our lives.

If you’ve ever asked for advice on this matter, chances are, you’ve been told to “follow your passion.”

Well, this can be a great advice if you already know what it is you’re passionate about, but… what should you do if you don’t?

If you currently find yourself in this predicament, my suggestion is start by paying attention to the things that excite you. Look at the things that make you truly come alive.

Speaking from my own experience, the search for your passion(s) may be a long-winded, sometimes confusing journey but one that is worthwhile to take.

In fact, I’ve spent the better part of my 20s taking the trial and error approach to desperately find my ‘purpose’.

Back in college, even though I managed to stick with the same majors (Business & Economics), by the time senior year came around, my peers were already running around in a frenzy sending out their resumes.

They’d lined up some interviews in hopes to get a spot at the top prestigious firms right out of graduation, yet, I find myself going against the tides.

I remembered thinking how ‘silly’ my peers were because almost all of them, with exception of a few, wanted the top jobs due to one thing: a great salary.

While I was almost clueless as to *what* I’d like to do after graduation, one thing I know for sure – I wanted to matter. And I also knew what I do not want: a well-paid but a soul-crushing job.

I knew that if I wanted to do meaningful work and truly learn, I had a better chance of doing so in a small or medium-sized company. So, I accepted a decently-paid job at a marketing firm with a kick-ass boss, a slew of challenging tasks & fun colleagues.

This is when G-d ‘intervened’…

While waiting for this job to start in the fall, I visited my family abroad during the summer and took an internship at a boutique executive search (headhunting) firm.

Little did I know, this decision ended up changing how my life was to unravel.

Long story short, as the wanted me to stay, they offered me a managerial position. It was a great opportunity but it’d mean that I’d have to uproot my life. After much deliberation, I decided to accept it. I loved the job and learned a lot but within less than 2 years, I realized that it wasn’t quite what I wanted to pursue in the long run.

Since then, I figured I should at least try anything that was remotely interesting and offer me the opportunity to grow.

And that, I did… As a result, in the span of 8 years, I had jobs across diverse industries: Human Resources, Law, Non-Profit, Fashion Publication, and Public Relations.

Though my resume ended up making it seem as if I were ‘indecisive’ and unable to commit, the experiences, knowledge, skills, and network that I’ve gathered along the way were priceless.  And more importantly, they’ve helped me to gain clarity on what my true passions are.

The road to finding them was certainly ‘messy’ but honestly, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

If the journey required to find your passion(s) sounds too daunting and risky to you, ask yourself this question: Are you willing to risk living your life without it and always having to wonder what could have been?

The truth is, if you yearn to live out the best version of your life, you must be willing to step out of your comfort zone in order to find and live out your passion.

The life of your dreams can be a reality, but first, you have to let go of the fears, doubts, and self-limiting beliefs that have been holding you back and find out just what makes you truly come alive…

As Mark Twain so eloquently said “Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the things that you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Read more: What Would You Do if You Weren’t Afraid?

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