Life-Purpose with a full time career?

[MiracleMan]

This has probably been addressed before, but I wanted to ask some folks who are working 40+ hours a week and have busy lives, how do you make time for your life purpose?

I work roughly 10-12 hours a day, by the time I get home, cook dinner, take care of mundane tasks, it's nearly bed time, and I'm totally drained of energy, I find it difficult to make time for a meditation practice, let alone the thousands and thousands of hours it takes to pursue a serious life purpose and obtain the skill set.

For myself, the career I'm working currently pays very well, but its not truly my passion, or my life purpose.

I've always known in a sense that music and art was my life purpose, and while it doesn't pay very well, I feel like I'd be satisfied if I could find a way to pursue the workload of my life purpose and balance my established career.  

I've also pondered paying off my debt (almost done) and trying to adapt to a very minimal lifestyle for a short time frame (1-3 years) to just study music, art, and pursue my spiritual endeavors full time.

All in all, I take little risk in leaving my career, it isnt going anywhere and neither is my skillset in that domain.  

Either way, I have to figure out something, and I've only come up with two options as I mentioned earlier:

1.  Use whatever little spare time I can to study and practice life purpose

2.  Leave a well established and high paying career to pursue it full time

I think either option I choose it will be a challenge.  

Anyone else have any ideas or are pondering the same struggle?

Thanks!

[Nahm]

@MiracleMan

Can you get away, attend a retreat?

Step away, empty yourself into the clarity.

Then when you return, that clarity can be applied. 

The foot that kicks you in the face helps you see that you are the foot, like the life you are living helps you realize the life you dream. It’s already working out perfectly. What don’t you want, what do you want? Where do you keep the paper you manifested this on? Hanging on the wall in front of a treadmill of sorts, I trust? Let the pain convince you to believe in yourself. You can do anything. 

[fabriciom]

Your situation sounds familiar.

I too tried the music thing for years. I learned everything there was to learn on production and wasted crazy amounts of money in equipment. Only to find out that music theory is the basis for everything. If you can compose you aren't going anywhere.

I also did the career thing. Did whatever to climb the corporate latter. Only to find out that the perfect job doesn't exist and money doesn't make you happy or make you feel safe.

I then started the enlightening search. It's been tough I'm still in it. But it's a whole lot more satisfying than anything I have done.

I do what ever job I can get and live on minimum expenses. I do have time to get home do some cicling and about an hour of meditation. But I can live with out it.

I prefer this life than the others.

But because this works for me right now it doesn't mean it will work for you.

It's hard to let go and change but if it's what you really want it will eventually happen.

[fabriciom]

What ever you do your mind will always tell you that in the future X will be better.

So changing what you are doing doesn't necessarily mean you will be better. Maybe for a while but not long.

So what I would concentrate is changing the how. 

[Hello from Russia]

What do you mean by art? what exactly you want to do in "art"?

[Harita Parson]

It's really hard to combine our lifestyle with hobbies even if the last one isn't a life-purpose. As for me I'm the mother of two wonderful children, have a job of my dream but I really have no time for going in for music. I adore playing the grand piano and have a great one at my home. Cooking and other household cores take all the time. I found a real tool for managing my time. It's Productivity Planner which helps me reach my goals and have free time for my hobby. I found it in this review https://onplanners.com/planners/best-planners-goal-setting
Maybe it'll help somebody to make his life more entertaining.

[Fuku]

On 9/12/2018 at 4:22 PM, Hello from Russia said:

What do you mean by art? what exactly you want to do in "art"?

Quote

Art is a diverse range of human activities in creating visual, auditory or performing artifacts (artworks), expressing the author's imaginative, conceptual idea, or technical skill, intended to be appreciated for their beauty or emotional power.

 

[Amer]

Hello @MiracleMan, I came across this section to start a topic about something similar and I found yours..

To give you an insight I would like to share with you my story, which is very similar to yours. but now I am in the process in taking action.

I have been doing a regular full time job since almost 7 years now. by nature, I am a dancer. (reason why I say by nature is because I have been doing it long before I entered the typical work/career life and even before I entered college) and I have been always serious about perfecting my craft (never thought of it as a career as I always thought I'll be able to combine a regular full time job and my art)

Yet and after 7 years,, I have been struggling, it's by force that I make time for my dance practice (which also includes other athletic activities and workouts, even meditation and mindfulness are also of vital importance) my case is very similar to yours when it comes to job "satisfaction" i have been doing it for the money only.. I never found anything fulfilling in it.

I turned 29 a couple of months ago and my only "resolution" for this year (before turning 30) was take an action towards this.

Around a month ago, I traveled MILES to do truffles/ mushrooms. Maybe I'll get an insight. (i would prefer to do a retreat like @Nahm has mentioned, but there was no retreats around me at that time, so I ended up travelling on my own)

Long story short, I have decided to really break out from the career life. I figured out that there's no solid plan to form until it's solid. If I don't break out as soon as possible I'll keep wandering until it's too late. So i really made the decision (also to add to that its not a huge income that i'm giving up, and like you mentioned, my skill set in that field will always be there).

Soon as I returned to the city where I work, I had immediately put my resignation. It's not as easy as it sounds. sometimes it feels crazy but at the same time I feel like there's a calling that I have to fulfill. I am trying to focus on that. I don't have a solid plan of what I am going to do but I do have a broad idea and i'll start from there.

So to start, yes I highly recommend what @Nahm has mentioned. I mean being on my own in the trip that I made made me realize a lot of my personal issues and insecurities and most importantly who I truly am and what I want to do in life and what I want to do to make it fulfilling.

and even more importantly, you gotta determine what exactly you want to do, what kind of art.

Hope this has given an insight! wishing you the best.

 

 

 

[Wyatt]

@MiracleMan Being realistic, you should understand that there is SUCH a small chance that you'll make enough money to support yourself as a musician. Especially in the first few years. You need to weigh the psychological toll of each choice: what will the negative emotions and thoughts be like with living very minimally for the next 5+ years pursuing music? Or, on your deathbed, will you hate yourself for stick with the safe option and never pursuing your passion as an artist? No one else can answer this for you.

My advice is, live extremely frugally for a few years until you save enough money to quit your job and pursue music without a plan of making real money for a few years. If your job really does pay well, this is a possibility.

[TomDashingPornstar]

You have to give things up to live your life purpose.

 

[Amer]

@TomDashingPornstar Truth. but that has to be done strategically. 

[Brittany]

On 9/12/2018 at 9:12 AM, MiracleMan said:

I work roughly 10-12 hours a day, by the time I get home, cook dinner, take care of mundane tasks, it's nearly bed time, and I'm totally drained of energy, I find it difficult to make time for a meditation practice, let alone the thousands and thousands of hours it takes to pursue a serious life purpose and obtain the skill set.

Wake up 1-3 hours early each morning

Cook dinner on Sunday nights for the entire week.  (or whichever day you get off)

Take care of mundane tasks on Saturdays and Sundays. (or whichever day you get off)

Also, what do you do during your lunch breaks?

Also, what do you listen to during your commute?

Edited September 30, 2018 by Brittany