Stephen Pressfield, author of the Legend of Baggar Vance and many other books, says that what made all the difference to him and his career was to simply deciding to Turn Pro.
He suggests that if you really love doing something, you shouldn’t do it as a hobby or an amateur. You should go all in and turn professional.
To do so he suggests addressing your shadow callings.
A shadow calling is any activity you do that is close to your ‘calling’ or passion but isn’t quite it.
For example, let’s say you had a real interest in becoming a therapist but rather than getting trained and certified, you simply start an advice blog.
It’s similar but it’s not quite the real thing.
Fully stepping into your calling is scary and it leaves you feeling naked.
What if I’m not good enough? What if it doesn’t work out?
The fact is, these things should be scary and pull us out of our comfort zones.
It also means saying goodbye to certain parts of you that may even bring you some joy.
If you want to turn pro in the thing you were put here to do, think about making some changes.
You must shed some old habits, acquaintances or the million little things that can derail your progress and set your life up and environment to help you succeed.
Turning pro is simple, but it’s not alway easy.
You don’t need anyone else to tell you you’ve turned pro, this is something you decide for yourself.
You may have to let the old version of you go, but what awaits on the other side can be a more fulfilling life.
Again, life can be harder when you turn pro, but at the end of the day, it will be more fulfilling.
Turning pro reminds me of the quote by Abraham Harold Maslow, the psychologist creator Maslow’s hierarchy of needs… he says “What one can be, one must be!”
So, what shadow callings do you need to let go off? What area in your life do you need to turn pro in?
