Finding Your Passion Again After a Job Loss

The other day I danced. It was around my livingroom, but I danced. I once dreamed of being a professional dancer on Broadway, but my reality and path in life led me into other creative directions for a career. I love dancing. It does something great for my soul. Whether it’s Ravel’s sultry Bolero, a lilting song by Judy Collins, Elton John’s rocking The One album or Pink Martini’s many styles, music makes me want to get up and move.

What makes you move, gives you a boost, charges your engines and makes you happy? Is there something you always wanted to do that you didn’t pursue? Is this your time, while you are between jobs, to try doing what makes your heart sing?

I met someone recently who is in his 50s and thinking of returning to dance, which he once pursued with passion. Now out of work and thinking of new options, he yearns to dance like he did when he was younger. I say, if the body is willing, why not?

Dance is only an example, and it may not be your passion, but don’t you have something you were pretty good at, something you always wanted to do besides what you ended up doing for a career? To get started, you could take a course or two, find a mentor, or do some informational interviews. Try whatever it is out for size. See if you can shift your career that’s been stalled by a layoff or other job loss in a new direction that makes you happier and pays the bills.

For me, writing filled the creative gap left after I stopped performing as a dancer. I’ve always loved to write anyway. Words have been the cornerstone of most of my career, and writing is a transferrable skill should I shift away from marketing and communications. The most important aspect of writing, however, is the passion I feel for it. If you can find that passion again, it can set your whole life on a path to greater happiness.