Three Sticks — Personal Development for Christians

Six months ago I left my job as the Chief Architect for the State of Georgia. I had been in this position for a little more than 4 years and I was completely burned out. I had been working professionally in the technology industry for approximately 16 years, from age 14 to age 30. As my 30th birthday neared, I realized that technology had become my career. Ironically that was never my intention. Although I have served in numerous capacities in the technology industry, technology started out as a hobby that eventually became a way to make money, although I throughly enjoy technology it didn’t drive me the way it drove early pioneers like Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and Scott McNealy. Creating new opportunities by driving technology deeper into the lives of individuals and the operations of businesses didn’t excite me enough to want to constantly push the envelope and drive an industry. Although I had an enviable career, I wasn’t motivated to push myself and become the best at what I was doing. At the time that I quit, all that I really knew was that I was unhappy, tired and unmotivated to do the work set before me. I still enjoyed the work intellectually, buy my heart and soul were not in it. I could put on a mask and fake passion or excitement for a given task, actually fake is too strong of a word. Because I enjoyed some parts of the work I could tap into the excitement that came for challenging my intellect and project that to my staff and other colleagues, but it was a temporary fix at best. Once I returned to my office and sat down the whole facade crumbled beneath my feet leaving me feeling empty and a little hopeless. I remember days where I literally received hundreds of emails and I didn’t open any of them because I simply didn’t care.

I knew that something had to change. I began to go back to earlier ideas I had when I was in college, one of those was becoming an entrepreneur. Several years ago, my brother and I had started a company, Miles Ahead LLC, and I thought that if I put my heart into the company that I would find the soul satisfaction that I craved. It was true, quitting and becoming a full time entrepreneur was exciting at first and did provide a level of satisfaction that I definitely enjoyed. But, it wasn’t enough. I felt like something was missing.

While considering what I would do next in my career, I made several mistakes. First, I didn’t allow myself to essentially throw away my resume and consider all possibilities. Second, I didn’t consciously spend time trying to understand what motivates me and why. Third, I didn’t let go of my former mindset that defined success materially. Lastly and most importantly, I allowed my intellect to drive my decision making rather than my heart, soul and God.

A quick level set for those who are visiting for the first time. In my article, My Ministry: Part 1 - Origin, I posit that at conception we are endowed by God with a purpose and that it is up to us to discover that purpose. Finding our purpose creates in us a level of peace and satisfaction that cannot be experienced in any other way.

Fortunately at the time that I quit, I had started to see a therapist ostensibly to address some of the childhood hurts that had carried over into adulthood. Before long, I realized that my sessions were as much about coming to terms with the past as it was about discovering who I am inside. It was a gradual progression that has slowly built up speed until it has become an avalanche of new understanding and acceptance. What I learned was that I needed to accept who I am in order to be happy and content. I know it sounds obvious, and intellectually I understood it, but allowing myself to feel the emotions of understanding and self-acceptance was overwhelming. As a Christian, my acceptance of myself is rooted in the acceptance of me by my savior Jesus Christ who I know loves me unconditionally regardless of my faults.

The experience has been very liberating. Much of what I thought I had to do I have let go so that I am free to do what I want to do, what I believe that God has placed in my heart.

What does this mean for my career? Once I discovered my purpose, see again My Ministry: Part 1 - Origin, which I believe is to empower, teach and heal others, I was free to define a new path that has much broader definition of career. I formerly defined my career as series of occupations that followed along a predefine path. For example, I began my technology career as a software tester and progressed through what I thought were the necessary jobs to move up the technology career ladder eventually leaving the pure technology track to become more of a leader and manager within the technology arena.

I’ve begun to think about my new career in terms of the roles that I would like to play and the roles that will enable me to maximize the reach of my message. In order for this to work and for me to maintain my peace, each role needs to relate to and depend on the others so that there is integrity of purpose in my life.

My Career will be defined by the following roles:

• Healer
• Teacher
• Writer
• Organizer
• Entrepreneur
• Investor

In each of these roles, I will further my God given purpose and in the process of doing so I will have peace, happiness and genuine contentment. In Part 3 of the My Ministry article series, I will explain in detail how I plan to assume these roles.

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