I know a lawyer who really wishes that he was a rabbi. I also know a rabbi who really wishes he was a doctor. Have you met the plumber who really wishes he was a poet or the bookkeeper who really wishes she was a ballerina? The lawyer is doing nothing to change his profession and neither is the rabbi. The plumber only dreams of writing and the bookkeeper only dreams of dancing.
Do I hear you say, “No harm in fantasy”? Wrong! Ancient Jewish wisdom teaches that fantasizing makes us less happy with our reality. Remember that lawyer harboring secret rabbinic dreams? Well, he’s less effective at his work. That rabbi daydreaming of replacing his dark suit with green scrubs has no passion for his profession. Deep down that plumber is dissatisfied with fixing faucets and as for that want-to-be ballerina, her clients get less of her enthusiasm than that faded old tutu in her closet.
Lingering thoughts of roads not traveled infiltrate all our minds, so how do we generate focused passion for what we actually are doing?
Let’s become flies on the wall for what must have been one of history’s most extraordinary meetings. First, we need a little Genesis arithmetic. Let’s say Adam was created at the beginning of year 1 and died in year 930. (Genesis 5:5)
Ten generations later, Noah was born in the year 1056 and died in the year 2006 at the age of 950 years-old. (Genesis 9:29) Meanwhile, in the year 1948, Abraham was born, which means that at the time of Noah’s death, Abraham was 58 years-old.
Do you think it feasible that Abraham, a spiritual seeker, would not have sought out the elderly Noah? It is impossible to fathom Abraham not seeking a meeting with the man whom God had directly instructed to build the ark and who was the living ancestor of everyone on earth.
What did they discuss? They might have commiserated about their wayward sons, Ham and Yishmael. That is merely conjecture, but they certainly must have discussed how and if they share their intimate relationship with God with other people. Noah, presumably, would have argued against trying to influence others to recognize God. When God warned of the impending destruction of humanity, Noah neglected the opportunity to attempt to persuade the population away from their wicked ways. He merely built an ark and saved himself and his family.
Abraham, by contrast, chose another path. As his future unfolds, we see that he never missed an opportunity to talk to people about God. He regularly invited strangers into his tent for a meal during which he shared his faith. Unlike Noah who silently accepted God’s decree on humanity, Abraham argued with God in an attempt to save the inhabitants of the doomed city of Sodom. Noah kept his relationship with God to himself. Abraham went in a different direction.
Which man was more successful? To be sure, Noah saved his family but Abraham launched a movement of God fearing and Bible believing people numbering in the millions, that even after the passage of thousands of years, endures to this day.
Talking enthusiastically about your work not only signals your passion but it also serves to augment the passion and professionalism you feel. Along with sharing what you do, here are nine more ways to increase your pride, passion and professionalism.
1. seize responsibility and accept accountability for your work
2. be punctual and reliable in all your work commitments
3. be consistently pleasant and polite in all work encounters regardless of your mood
4. speak and write like an educated adult
5. be sufficiently serious as frivolity is not professional unless you’re a paid comedian
6. dress with dignity
7. expand your skills and improve them constantly
8. never yield to your anger
9. deliver more than expected
So banish those daydreams and enjoy whatever it is you do by becoming ever more professional about it. Of course if you really mean to make a major life change, then don’t just dream of doing it; do it. But if you are retaining your current occupation, you’ll discover unsuspected delights by embracing professionalism. These delights will far exceed anything available through fantasies and daydreams.
