Q. I like my work and I think I’m good at it (I just recently got promoted to a higher level), but I really do not believe that it is my passion because it causes a lot of stress in me and I still consider it “a job.” Don’t they say that if you love your work, you don’t feel like it’s work at all?
Work that IS our passion can still create stress in us. It’s our rules and beliefs that are the major contributors to job stress. They are also what make a task feel heavy and pressure-filled — like WORK — rather than enjoyable and co-creative — like play.
Imagine a birthday cake with three pesky seagulls buzzing around it. Fact is, we’re going to focus on those stress-inducing gulls until we shoo them away. After they are gone, it will be MUCH easier to decide whether this is a cake that is perfect for us or not.
[Sure, sometimes the people we work with can be unsafe or even abusive. But here we’re talking about stress rather than an emotionally unsafe environment where you may need to set healthier boundaries.]
From Stress to Relief
You can start by noticing what specifically stresses you. Is it a person? Is it a task? Is it the pace?
What emotion do you feel when you focus on the specific cause of your stress? It could be overwhelm. It could be disrespected. It could be lost and incompetent. It could be unappreciated. It could be… threatened.
Where do you feel this in your body?
Given those specifics, you can start tapping.
Even though (this specific situation) makes me feel (emotion) in my (body location), I choose to feel…
How would you like to feel? Surprisingly calm and confident? Engaged and empowered? Your choice!
Tap through the points while tuning into the emotion in your body. Notice it shifting. Let your body activate a more pleasing (and less stressful) energy… like feeling calm and confident rather then stressed and pressured.
In my experience with clients, when you tap on the stresses, your attitude about your job changes. You become more attuned to the positive qualities. You become clearer about what it is that you want. By letting go of the “engagement” you have with the stresses, you can often evolve your position in the company in a way that is more pleasing to you… or allow yourself to flow naturally to a position elsewhere that is even better!