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By Jackie Jones

As a career coach, I constantly work with people who are trying to figure out what is best for them, not just in terms of having a job, but whether it is the RIGHT job. Even in this scary economy, it is important that you find something that is soul satisfying, as well as a step toward financial security.

So let me recommend a couple of things I tell my clients to do:

Make a list of what you do and don't like about your current, or most recent job.

Look at what you like. Are any of those things on your list? If not, can you make them happen on the job or do you need a change of venue? Ask yourself, "Do I have a career or a job?"

Think about what life would be like if you pursued your passions part time. Would you then be willing to put in the work to make it a full-time gig and how long are you willing to work to make it happen?

Once you have the answers, then the steps to success begin to fall into place.

No matter what you do for a living, the skills you take for granted often translate into the job you envision for yourself. Receptionists, waiters, taxi drivers, reporters, photographers, graphic designers, editors all have developed people management skills that you never think about. You have to juggle phones or orders. You have to keep lots of people happy. You deal with impatient customers and surly bosses and convince peers to work with you to ensure a smooth transition when your shift is over. When things fall behind schedule, it is your job to smooth them over with those who are being made to wait.

Depending on how busy your workplace is, you may find yourself managing mini-crises on a regular basis. Those skills translate to other work environments.

This is your year to make your life what you want it to be. A year ago, no one gave Barack Obama a snowball's chance in hell of becoming president, but he figured out what he needed to do to win and set about doing it. You aren't running for president, you're just running your life. That's a lot easier than a war on two fronts and an economy, as a source once described it to me, that looks like Amy Winehouse.