Published: Monday, 18th January, 2010 10:14am

2010: the year of the dream job!

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Dream jobs do exist - the only problem is in knowing how to find them. Follow inspirational life coach Sarah Cooper's advice and make 2010 the year that you land your perfect job.

I like to call this the 'Apple Pie Approach to finding work you love'. Early on in the film When Harry Met Sally, Harry and Sally stop off at a roadside café en route to New York. Sally is ordering apple pie:

Sally: But I'd like the pie heated and I don't want the ice cream on top, I want it on the side, and I'd like strawberry instead of vanilla if you have it, if not then no ice cream just whipped cream but only if it's real; if it's out of the can then nothing.

Waitress: Not even the pie?

Sally: No, I want the pie, but then not heated.

 

One of the things I often notice is how quick we are to water down what we really want, for what we think we can get - for what's listed on the menu, as it were.

This article is about landing your DREAM job. Not a better-than-the one-I've-got-now-and-at-least-it-pays-the bills job. So, let's take a leaf from Sally's à la carte approach to life (or at least desserts):

Sally's 1st Rule - Set high standards

Believe that loving what you do is possible. If you find that difficult, try at least to suspend your disbelief for a period of time. Tell yourself, 'for the next three months, I'm going to take a leap of faith and throw myself 100% into finding my ideal job'.

Sally's 2nd Rule - Define EXACTLY what you want

Three of the most important areas to reflect on are:

Your passions or interests

Many people separate their 'social' personality from their professional identity, but this can make the 'work you' feel that an important piece of you is missing.

Say you are a marketing executive who has always worked for multinational financial services companies, but every holiday you can't wait to put on your back pack and head off to Umbrella Falls, Medicine Hat or Chocolate Island (yes these places really exist!). This year, why not seek out marketing opportunities at off-the-beaten-track travel specialists?

Skills you love to use

Organisations often 'reward' employees (with extra projects, promotions or secondments) for their capabilities in an area - but these areas aren't always ones we find fulfilling.

Take a sheet of paper and draw a large cross on it. Label the horizontal line 'How good I am at this skill' with the furthest left point being pretty awful and the furthest right, excellent. Label the vertical line 'How much I would like to use this skill', with the bottom of the line meaning you'd prefer root canal work and the top meaning you'd be ecstatically happy.

Plot every skill you can think of (there are lists on Google). The skills in the top right quadrant (you love them AND you're great at them) should form a substantial part of your new job. Ditch anything south of the horizontal line, no matter how good you are at it. And consider developing the top left corner - skills you'd really like to use - even if currently you're not all that accomplished in them.

Your career values

Now it's time to go a little deeper. Why are you attracted to your passions and favourite skills? What values lie at the heart of those activities?

Say you know you like writing. But you haven't thought too hard about why, so you haven't appreciated that it's being able to express yourself creatively that is at the root of that enjoyment. Along comes a job requiring a lot of report writing. On a superficial level, that would look a good fit for you. You like writing - the job involves a lot of writing. But it wouldn't meet your values of creativity and self-expression, so the work would ultimately be unsatisfying.

Identify your top five interests, skills and values and you've got a very accurate filter for assessing potential jobs.

Sally's 3rd Rule - Ask for it!

Treat the job description as it currently stands as apple pie on a fixed menu. You are interviewing the company just as much as the other way around, so see what à la carte options are available. Ask whether there is flexibility in the hours, salary, and location - even the content of the role. If you've shown yourself to be an exceptional candidate (which you would always naturally strive to do), it's very likely your potential employer will do what they can to accommodate you.

Above all, don't give up. Sometimes we do need to take a watered down job to pay the bills. That's fine as a short-term solution. But make this year different. Take the time to paint a picture of your dream work, and no matter how distant it may seem, set out on a path towards it. As Confucius said: "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work in your life."

Books to inspire you in 2010

1. I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was by Barbara Sher

Pinpoints the most common reasons for not knowing what you want to do and prescribes many useful exercises to help you overcome your blocks.

2. What Colour Is Your Parachute by Richard Bolles

Particularly useful advice on the career search process and the power of informational interviewing.

3. Do What You Are by Tieger and Barron

Applies the world's leading personality instrument, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, to career choice. Understand what occupations are popular for your Type and why.

Through her business, Cows From My Window, Sarah Cooper helps mid-career professionals transition from traditional careers to work and a lifestyle that is more "off the beaten path". Her clients' impetus for change is a desire to follow a passion, express their creativity or help people or society in some way - and at the same time to lead a richer, more family-friendly lifestyle.

If you'd like to find more fulfilling work, sign up for Sarah's FREE 5 part e-course Finding Freedom By Doing What You Love at www.nomoredreadingmondays.com

To see what other inspirational books Barbara Sher has written, visit http://www.barbarasher.com