Write your ideal job description.

On occasion, when a particular employee is exceptionally good or valuable to a company, it's not uncommon for some companies to recognize that person's gifts by showing them exceptional trust or deference.  One of the ways that can often be shown is by giving that employee the opportunity to write their own job description.

Has that ever happened to you or to someone you know?  What would you do if you were given that opportunity?  What would your ideal job description sound like?

Several years ago, while having a conversation with my friend and fellow author Honoree Corder, she asked me the question, "If you could create your ideal life, what would it look like and what would you do?  Are there things you're doing now that you would like to do more?  Are there things you're doing now that you'd like to do less?"

I really appreciated her questions and I took some time to think through my answers before replying.  The more I thought about what she said, the more I kept coming back to one particular word:  TEACH.  Her questions helped me realize that I genuinely wanted to spend more of my life teaching than what was the case at present.  That conversation directly contributed to my decision to start BibleStudyHeadquarters.com and to teach at Cairn University.

I told her I wanted to teach more than I was presently teaching, so I made some changes in my life that allowed me to do that very thing.  To put it another way, you can saw I was "writing my own job description."  I looked at what I was called and shaped to do and decided to take action to make doing it more of a part of my life.

I read a similar thing while learning more about a man named S. Michael Houdmann.  Houdmann is the founder of a faith-based website called GotQuestions.org.  He started it somewhere around 2002, and the site has increasingly grown in popularity ever since.  

Basically, Houdmann loved theology and the study of the Bible, but he didn't feel particularly called to serve in some of the traditional forms of spiritual leadership that some might assume a man of his interests might pursue.

According to Houdmann, "So, my wife and I began praying, asking [God to] give me a ministry that was a unique fit for me. We can’t remember whether God first gave the idea to me or my wife, but we felt the Lord leading us to create a Christian website where people could come and ask any question they have about the Bible. That was the beginning of GotQuestions.org."

Houdmann went on to say, "I thank God every day that I get to serve Him doing something I absolutely love and enjoy. If I were to write a job description of my dream ministry, it would describe precisely what I am doing, except for perhaps less administrative work. I have always loved technology. I have always been able to express myself better in writing than in speaking. So, a ministry that allows me to write, edit, develop, research, and publish content is a perfect fit for me."

I don't know if you consider yourself to be a person of faith like I am or like S. Michael Houdmann is, but just the same, is there anything about the things he said that resonates with you?  Do you spend every day serving others in a capacity that you absolutely love and enjoy?  Would you describe your tasks as a unique fit for you based on your talents, gifts, and abilities?

One of the blessings that comes with creating an online platform or a message-based business is the privilege to write your own job description.  You get to take a hard look at what you enjoy doing and what you don't enjoy doing, then decide how much of it you're going to do.

But for many of us, that's easier said than done.  In fact, I'm convinced that we often need outside help to come up with our ideal job description.  

So if I may, please allow me to be one of the voices that offers you outside help as you attempt to determine what you should be doing with the next season of your life.  Let me offer a set of clarifying questions for you to consider.

•  1.  What are my interests?
•  2.  Which skills have I developed that I enjoy using?
•  3.  What value am I uniquely capable of offering?
•  4.  Do I sense a calling on my life that nudges me to move in a particular direction?
•  5.  In which contexts does my personality type thrive?
•  6.  Based on past experiences, is there a task or responsibility that I should not be doing?
•  7.  Am I running from something or am I running toward something?

Let me suggest that you do a few things with this list of questions.

First of all, if you're a person of faith, pray about these matters.

Second, take some time away from your normal distractions and think through each of these questions with a journal or a notebook handy.  Jot down your thoughts and attempt to process these questions one at a time.

Third, sit down with one or two people who know you extremely well.  People whose character and motives you completely trust.  Discuss these questions with them and pay close attention to the feedback they give you.  It might be wise to jot down some of their answers as well.

Creating an online platform isn't something you need to do to fill up your time.  It should be something that capitalizes on your strengths and abilities.  It should make the most of the unique value you're able to offer others.  Ideally, it should be a reflection of your ideal job description if you were given the opportunity to write one.

© John Stange, 2025