The LifePlan Workbook - Christianity 9 To 5

The LifePlanWorkbookA Step-by-Step Guide for Developingand Achieving Your Career GoalsMichael Zigarelli1

CONTENTSGet Going on SomethingThat Really Matters2STEP ONE: Get a Clue7STEP TWO: Get a Goal14STEP THREE: Get a Plan17STEP FOUR: Get a Gauge19 2013 by Michael ZigarelliAll Rights Reserved.2

Get Going on SomethingThat Really MattersYour life is a series of choices. If youchoose to do so, you can do greatthings with your life. Things thatmatter. Things that positivelyinfluence the lives of others. Eventhings that will be changing liveslong after you’re gone.You may not even be aware of thepotential that you have, but it’sthere. In fact, you’re the only onewho can stop you from achieving it.It’s a choice, and this resource isdesigned to help you make thatchoice in a way that honors God.More specifically, The LifePlanWorkbook is a step-by-step guide thatwill walk you through the process ofidentifying and pursuing the careerpaths for which you are gifted.The premise of this workbook is nota controversial one, regardless of ourworldview: You are more likely toachieve the potential God hasplaced in you if you know whereHe’s leading and you have a planto get there.In the next several pages, you’ll havethe opportunity to walk through astep-by-step process that has helpedmany before you—a logical andpowerful process that includesseeking God’s calling on your life,setting goals consistent with thatcalling, developing a strategy topursue those goals, and habituallytracking your progress.Much of this is straightforward andeven fun to do, but we seldom makethe time to do it in our frenetic, overextended lives. Instead, many peopletake a cavalier approach to hearingGod or pursuing goals, an approachthat often leads to spotty results,dead ends, wasted time and effort,and often, later regrets over whatmight have been.Like other types of planning we do –planning a wedding, planning avacation, financial planning, and soon – creating a LifePlan willprobably enhance your chances ofgetting good results, perhaps evencontributing to a distinctive legacyof faithfulness.That legacy starts with the internalsand then becomes relevant throughthe externals, so throughout thisworkbook, I’ll ask you to considerthese two related areas: God’s willfor your spiritual life (an internalissue) and God’s will for your worklife (an external issue). The former isa foundation for success in the latter.3

You can skip directly to Step One ifyou’d like, but it may be worthwhileto first hear from God’s Word aboutwhat these two dimensions entail. Indoing so, we develop a morecompelling vision for why all thismatters and, pivotally, a genuineintention to pursue these goals inearnest.God’s Will for YourSpiritual LifeCollectively called the “fruit of theSpirit,” the indicators are: “love, joy,peace, patience, kindness, generosity,faithfulness, gentleness, and selfcontrol” (Galatians 5:22-23). Suchvirtues reveal our Christian maturitysince they are a reflection of Godworking in and through us. After all,it was Jesus Himself who taught: “Nobranch can bear fruit by itself; itmust remain on the vine. Neithercan you bear fruit unless you remainin me” (John 15:4).God calls us to live a life that putsHim at the center—thatsubordinates our will to His will andthat makes a priority of growthtoward holiness. More basically, Hecreated us for relationship with Himand, through the power of thatrelationship, to be “salt and light” inthe world. He did not create us tolive a dualistic (or double-minded)life, relegating our spiritual life tothe pews. Rather, faith and life can bea seamless tapestry.Clearly, then, from a scripturalstandpoint, God calls us to remain inHim and to become like Him – tobecome “fruit of the Spirit” believers.And that maturation process willtouch every aspect of your life,including, of course, your work life.Part of your LifePlan, therefore, willbe to examine yourself on many ofthese dimensions, to set developmentgoals, and to craft a plan for spiritualgrowth.Christian scripture speaksgenerously to this issue, both in theOld and New Testament,encouraging believers to “commit tothe Lord whatever you do” (Proverbs16:3), to “do everything to the gloryof God” (1 Corinthians 10:31), and tolet your “light shine before men thatthey may see your good deeds andpraise your Father in heaven”(Matthew 5:16; cf. also Colossians3:23-24, 1 John 2:6, Psalms 37:5). InGalatians 5, Paul gets even morespecific, identifying nine distinctmeasures of the extent to which Godis revealed in our daily lives.God’s Will for Your Work LifeConsider this brief vignette. See if itresonates. It’s someone else’s story,but it may be yours as well:Approximately twenty-four months intohis job, Mark had become quite proficientat analyzing financial statements andperforming all of the client service dutiesassigned to him. He was regarded as oneof the more diligent employees in thedepartment, he was earning enoughmoney to easily pay his bills, and he wasnow being groomed for a promotion.Everything had fallen in place nicely for4

Mark. Still, something important seemedto be missing from his work life, namelypurpose.Before him sat yet another balance sheetfrom yet another new client. Markrubbed his eyes and looked at his watch.3:32. He glanced at the statement.Accounts Receivable: 25,100, Inventory: 68,055.He took a sip of coffee and checked his email. Nothing. He peeked his head out ofthe cubicle to see if there was someone –anyone – to divert his attention from theincessant parade of debits and credits.No one there. He looked at his watchagain. 3:34.“What an empty existence,” Markthought. “Crunching numbers day afterday. Answering to clients and managers,jumping through their hoops. Spending50 or 60 hours a week simply to makemoney for this thankless company.There’s got to be something more towork than earning a paycheck, movingup the ladder, and retiring.” 3:35.There is. And the good news is youwon’t need to change jobs to find it.Many people perceive work asmundane and their jobs as little morethan a means to an economic end.Often, like Mark, they struggle tofind personal fulfillment in theirwork, even when they perform theirjobs well. Some eagerly awaitFridays and lament Mondaymorning. Their bosses are toocritical and their families take themfor granted. So to enhance thequality of their work lives and togain a sense of accomplishment, theypursue raises and promotions andpower, only to later learn that evenhere, the satisfaction is fleeting.Then, work returns to its routine,relatively meaningless state.That’s a pretty dismal portrayal, Iknow, and I wish I could say that it’san overstatement. But for millions ofpeople in the workforce, it’s a dailyreality. Awhile back I read anAmerican Demographics magazinestory that reported, consistent withthe results of many similar surveys,that more than one out of everythree U.S. workers is not satisfiedwith his or her work. In a workforceof about 150 million, that translatesinto about fifty million dissatisfiedemployees!But there’s something even moretroublesome about this statistic.Because so many of us link ourpersonal worth to what we’reaccomplishing, when we perceive ourwork as dissatisfying, menial, orpurposeless, we feel personallyinsignificant. Like Mark, we canexperience a significant void, sensingthat we are missing somethingessential in our lives.And, in fact, we are. This feeling ofemptiness is far removed from whatGod intends for us. God createdwork – all work – to be primarily aspiritual activity, not an economicor social activity. As is sometimesthe case, though, our perspectivemay not comport with God’sperspective and we thereby forfeitthe precious gift of purposeful work.5

So how should we think about ourwork? A lot of books address thisquestion very well, as we’ll see in the“Action Step” below, but here’s anoverview. The Bible, from its veryfirst chapters, illustrates that work isby God’s design. Genesis opens withGod working, creating the heavensand the earth, the day and the night,the water and the land, the sky, thebirds and all of the animals. Godthen creates people in His ownimage, calling us to imitate Him ineverything that He does, includingwork.shelter without requiring any labor.God, it seems, must have createdwork for another purpose.And God communicates not onlythrough His example that work isintrinsic to our existence; He alsoteaches this directly: “Be fruitful andincrease in number; fill the earth andsubdue it” (Genesis 1:28, emphasisadded). To “subdue” the earth is tocultivate it, to transform it, and toadapt its resources. It is a task thatclearly implicates work. Perhapseven more plain in this regard isGenesis 2:15, which says: “The LordGod took the man and put him in theGarden of Eden to work and takecare of it”—that is, to work in it.This straightforward, trenchantpassage tells us to conceptualizewhatever we do – everything we do –as service to the Lord. In otherwords, when we go to school, it ismore than to become educated or toget a job, it is to serve God. Whenwe raise a family, it is primarily toserve God. When we exercise, it is,first and foremost, to serve God bystewarding this body He lent us.Even when we do something asseemingly frivolous as yard work orhousework, it is for Him. And, mostpertinent here, when we pursue Hiscommand to “subdue the earth” –when we go to work each day – weare to consider our workplace sacredground and our tasks divine service.He’s our Supreme Boss, our DivineManager. It is to God that weultimately report.God has therefore created us towork, taught us by example to work,and specifically directed us to work.But to what end? What exactly doesGod want us to accomplish throughour work? Did He simply inventwork so that we could earn a livingand survive?That’s unlikely. If survival were Hisconcern, He could simply provide, aswe do for our own children, food andThe New Testament clarifies thispurpose. Perhaps Colossians 3:23-24says it most poignantly:“Whatever you do, work at it withall of your heart, as working forthe Lord, not for men, since youknow that you will receive aninheritance from the Lord as areward. It is the Lord Christ youare serving.”You see, God created our work notas a curse and not as just a means tosurvival, but to allow us to glorifyHim through it.6

That’s the primary purpose of work.Moreover, if we genuinely work toplease God, He changes us throughthat activity, cultivating ourcharacter and making it more likelythat others will see God through us.When properly conceived, our work,as it turns out, may be less intendedto make us happy than it is to makeus holy.inscribed “S.D.G.” on all of hiscompositions, standing for Soli DeoGloria: “to the glory of God alone.”Bach was an independent contractorwho perceived himself as completelydependent. He could have been hisown boss, but like Rembrandt andMichelangelo and countless others oftheir time, he accepted direction andinspiration from a wiser Boss.Note also that none of this depends onwhat type of job you have. Whetheryou’re digging ditches as amissionary or for a constructioncompany, your work can please God.Homemaker, homebuilder, or homerun hitter, you can be serving Godand others in every facet of yourdaily work.Now, hundreds of years later andthousands of years after the Gardenof Eden, God’s purpose for our workremains the same: “S.D.G.” Don’tfall into the trap of thinking about itany other way.An often-related story along theselines is that of Johann SebastianBach, the great composer, whoACTION STEPVisit the Online Library atwww.Christianity9to5.org andread some of the articles underthe category “Your Work is YourMinistry.”Consider how this perspectiveabout work differs from how weusually think about work. Whatdifference does it make if wefinally adopt that divineperspective as our own?7