Follow Your Bliss and Other Lies about Calling

Abstract

Abstract This book challenges superficial ways people use the word calling, providing a revolutionary way to approach it, not as some glorified word but as a complicated, ambiguous, and even painful reality. Shallow renderings of calling in trendy self-help literature and religious circles (“follow your bliss”; “God has a plan for your life”) greatly diminish the power of the word and are not only inadequate but sorely misleading, especially given the complexity of life and the reality that callings always demand a great deal from people. Lofty expectations that a person can (or must) find the perfectly fitting job, the one and only special life partner, the ideally balanced life, or the one-time summons from God are deceptive and destructive. Calling means so much more than seeking gladness, job success, or God’s will. To truly grapple with calling requires consideration of how it evolves amid the constraints of life. Drawing on stories from memoirs, novels, cultural figures, and everyday people, the book looks at six difficulties in early, middle, and late adulthood, from leaving paths untrodden (missed callings) and running into impediments (blocked callings) to having competing callings (conflicted callings) and failing in one or more area (fractured callings) to managing unwanted demands (unexpected callings) and giving up what one has done and loved (relinquished callings). By insisting that callings have benefits and burdens across adult life, the book hopes to make the idea of calling more useful and real for all those who aspire to live meaningful, purposeful lives.

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