If you want to live a much more meaningful life, it makes sense that you should strive to bring your work life into line with your values. After all, if you’re anything like the average American you will spend 47 hours per week at work – that’s a lot.
Luckily, there are countless occupations and careers that you can get into that enable you to live a life of purpose and spend those 47 hours each week doing something that is truly meaningful, and which will really make a difference. Here are just some of them for your consideration:
Doctor
You’ll be saving lives and relieving pain daily. Do I really need to say anymore?
Nursing
Nurses are just as vital to the health of the population as doctors. In fact, you could argue that in many ways they are more important in some ways in that they spend more time with patients, caring for them before, after and during operations, which is really important for those patients’ health and well-being, and particularly important for their recovery on the whole.
Healthcare Administration
It might not seem that it is the case when compared to say becoming a doctor or nurse, but getting your healthcare administration MBA can enable you to make a real difference. Why? Because healthcare facilities simply would not function without proper administration, Of course, doctors and nurses are vital, but so are qualified administrators who can ensure that correct records are kept, proper schedules are created and…well a million other things. If your skills lie more in the administration side of thing, there is still plenty you can do to help the sick.
Veterinarian
If you’re passionate about our animal friends, you’ll find few careers are as fulfilling as that of a veterinarian. You can quite literally save thousands of animal lives and make sick animals way more comfortable by qualifying as a vet. It can also be a very lucrative career move too.
Animal Caregiver
Caring for abandoned animals may be less lucrative, but it is just as, if not more meaningful than training a veterinarian, and it is a much easier occupation for the average person to get into. Talk to your local Humane Society about any qualifications you may need, get qualified and spend your days caring for cute, cuddly animals. What’s not to love?
Conservationist
Being a conservationist is another excellent way for those of you who are animal lovers to find meaning in your work. It is work that can also take you all over the world, and because you will be saving species from extinction, there is no denying that you will be doing something positive with your life.
Social Work
If you want to make the lives of your neighbors better, getting your Bachelor of Social Work and becoming a social worker is undoubtedly one of the best ways you can make that your life’s work. There are so many vulnerable adults and children out there who need help managing their lives or getting out of impossible situations, that every day you go to work, you will see the positive impact you are making and you will know it’s worth it, Of course, social work isn’t always easy, and you will definitely come across some harrowing situations, so it probably isn’t for the faint-hearted, but if you can handle it, it could make an excellent career for you.
Running a Non-Profit
If you would prefer to be your own boss, running a non-profit could be one option that suits. By going down this route, you can pretty much choose the exact line of work you get into, who it benefits and how they are benefitted. It gives you complete autonomy over your life, but you will have to think of a good idea and have the means of financing it, or raising finance, to get things off the ground, Perhaps you could team up with other like-minded individuals to create something special; something that will be a lasting legacy?
Teaching
Teaching is a great way of giving back to society as a whole. By nurturing young minds and teaching them to be the best they can be, you improve the future for all of us. If you want even more meaning than that, then teaching kids with special educational needs or kids who have been abandoned by the system due to behavioral problems is a good way of doing that. However, just plain teaching in any form is full of meaning; it’s not always high paying, but there’s lots of meaning.
Shelter Cook
Another way to help people within your community is by becoming a shelter cook. If you have trained as a chef, or you are able to create nutritious meals on a tight budget, then you can completely transform your life and improve the lives of others, by cooking them food that they would otherwise go without. More importantly, your life will be enriched by the people you meet, you will be humbled daily, and that will seek to inspire you even further.
Emergency Responder
Whether it’s the police force, an emergency medical team or the fire service that you join up to, becoming an emergency responder is a fulfilling job that allows you to help people in their hour of need on a daily basis. Obviously, you get to see the worst of humanity along with the best in these kinds of roles, but if you can take the rough with the smooth, you’ll never feel like you’ve wasted a day in an emergency response role.
Counselor
There are a lot of people out there struggling with a lot of issues, unable to find better mental health alone. If you’re a good listener, why not qualify as a counselor or psychotherapist and start helping them out of their problems? It can be a hard job, but it is undoubtedly a rewarding one for the kind of people who are good listeners and who are able to see their way through situations that other people would flounder in.
Where will you find your meaning?
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