The average person works 1,700 hours per year. Most people spend more hours working than at any other (conscious) activity they do. Work you hate is a life sentence. Work you love sets you free.

Some people are lucky—they find a job they love early on and every day is a dream come true. Others, like me, have to create it.

Not all that many years ago, my work life was a mess. I was desperately trying to make a multi-level marketing business succeed. I was spending 10 hours a day on the phone calling “leads” I purchased—trying to convince them to invest in what I know would call a “get rich quick” scheme.

Not only did I fail horribly at this “profession,” but also I hated every minute of it. It was my most despised job, which I’m sure was one reason I was so bad at it.

I went on to discover I could create not only work I loved, but unlimited abundance as well. It took a while to make that happen, but make it happen I did—in spades.

My work is currently my greatest passion and I have enough money to do anything I can dream of doing. It happened in stages—a bit at a time. Why? Because generally we heal, grow, and create a bit at a time.

Also, things usually manifest a bit at a time. You’ll also likely create your dream job over time. As you become clearer and more powerful, your reality will respond—it always does.

Work you love is creatable—if you are willing to do what it takes to make it happen. Ahem, read that line again if you will:

Work you love is creatable—if you are willing to do what it takes to make it happen.

Most people who read this post will smile, feel good for a while, just knowing this information is here if they want it, and go back to their boring 9-5 or cry in their beer about not having enough money/freedom/energy to have the job they truly desire.

It’s best those people keep one thing in mind:

Reality.

Is.

An.

Illusion.

But in order to change the illusion you have to change yourself. You have to do the work.

Here are 10 steps to create a career you love—along with the beliefs that may stand in your way (if you let them):

1. Know you have the power

You have to really believe this is possible before you try and create it. And if you’re skeptical or just plain incredulous that you create your own reality—start here. And build a strong foundation for the career you really want.

And don’t forget, even though one part of you believes you have the power, another part (such as your child or adolescent self) may not.

Here are some beliefs you may hold:

I can’t create my reality.
I can’t change my beliefs.
It is difficult to create my reality.
It is hard to change beliefs.
I can change some things but not career.

Change them to:

I can create my reality.
I can change my beliefs.
It’s a cinch to create my reality.
It is easy to change beliefs.
I can change everything, including career.

Then, you will be ready for the next step…

2. Believe you can have a job you love (and money too)

If you don’t believe a career you adore with more money than you ever dreamed of is within the realm of possibility, or within the realm of possibility for you, then you’ve failed before you started.

Here are some beliefs that may be holding you back:

It’s not possible to create a job I love.
Most entrepreneurs fail, therefore I will fail if I start my own business.
I can’t make enough money doing what I truly love.

You can change those beliefs (and it’s easy), to:

It is possible to create a job I love.
Most entrepreneurs don’t consciously create; therefore I will succeed if I start my own business.
I can make enough money doing what I truly love.

Once those have been changed…

3. Separate career from money

Yeah, you read right. In order to create career success most elegantly, it is important to separate your career from your finances—at least in your head. If you don’t, you’ll end up going round in circles thinking you need one to have the other.

If you separate the two (again, in your head, as you do the work to create them both), you’ll have an easier time discovering the beliefs that stand in the way of each.

Granted, you may indeed create your abundance through your career, but then again, you may not. Let the universe decide.

4. Set your intentions to create it

The most elegant way to begin any dream is by “intending” for it to manifest.

Here are some intentions to get you started:

On work:

• I intend to create a job (and/or business) I love, with ease, elegance, fun, and joy.
• I intend every minute I work to be filled with fun, creativity, excitement, abundance, prosperity, joy, and positive surprises.
• I intend to create supportive, healthy, beautiful, and nurturing surroundings at work.
• I intend to work with like-minded people whom I enjoy immensely and feel greatly supported by.
• I intend to be positively challenged with my work—always stretching, reaching new heights, and growing.

On money:

• I intend for unlimited cash and resources to flow into my life easily, abundantly, and endlessly, no matter what I do for work.
• I intend that my financial abundance provides greater and greater levels of security, freedom, ease, and elegance.
• I intend to be shown any beliefs, thoughts, patterns, or habits that are holding me back from unlimited abundance, and I intend to change them, with ease, elegance and harm to none.

Once you’ve written your intentions…

5. Redefine “work”

Many of us were introduced to the concept of work by parents and other authority figures who looked at work as something to “be done with” so they could get on with a more “enjoyable” part of life. But who wants to live a life where work is a burden?

And luckily, it’s easy to redefine work—you simply discover (and change) beliefs such as these:

Work is hard, boring, and thankless.
Work is difficult and unpleasant.
Work is an unfortunate duty each of us must undertake.
Work is what you have to do to make lots of money.

And change them to:

Work is easy, exciting and rewarding.
Work is easy and fun.
Work is an exciting privilege each of us gets to undertake.
Work is what you get to do to express your genius.

See? Easy peasy. It really is easy—but again—you have to do the work.

Those are the first five steps to Create a Career You Love! Start changing those beliefs today, separating work from money (at least in your head).

With lots of love (and belief in you!),

P.S. Learn how to change beliefs here, and if you’d like to use a pre-recorded Belief Changing Meditation, I’ve got you covered!

P.P.S. Ready for the next five steps? 10 Steps to Create a Career You Love Part II