You must stop searching for your passion and focus on THIS instead.
Does it seem like everyone keeps telling you to "find your passion" or "quit your job and do whatever you're passionate about"?
Of course I'm a big proponent of chasing your dreams to create an awesome life. I just wrote a book about it. (Have you bought it yet?)
The problem is that most people I talk to DON'T KNOW what their life passion is.
"How do I pick JUST ONE thing??" You want to scream.
Some people claim they were born to sing songs or paint pictures, but I don't think anyone was born to do any one thing.
Taylor Swift is the biggest star of the decade. Was she born to write and sing songs? She might say so, but what if (for whatever reason) she was instantly unable to perform? I'm confident she would find a new way to create some other kind of art to connect with people about her recent break up or whatever her songs are about.
By talking with other entertainers and people pursuing non-traditional careers, I've found one key that has absolutely changed my outlook on 'passion' seeking.
As an entertainer, artist (or whatever your job is), you have tools to utilize.
I perform in a variety show so my tools are juggling props and unicycles to make people smile, a musician has instruments to share their emotions, an artist has paint brushes to show the world what's inside their mind, a finance person in NYC has tools and software that I don't understand to allow them to do whatever they do.
We all have tools we use to make our jobs possible, or at least easier. Focusing on these tools is like searching for your passion - probably a waste of time.
When we talk about finding PASSION, we're always talking about what makes US happy and what OUR desires are.
WHERE SHOULD OUR FOCUS BE INSTEAD?
If passion is about ourselves, how can we shift our work to helping others?
PURPOSE.
Working for or seeking your purpose is much different than doing it for passion.
What am I passionate about?
I don't know. I like juggling, but I don't spend sleepless nights wishing I could be juggling. Maybe I'm not passionate about anything. I know exactly how I want to affect other people though. My purpose is clear.
What is my purpose?
To entertain audiences and make them forget about their troubles and hopefully inspire them along the way.
When I stop worrying about some small specific thing to be passionate about, I can focus on the bigger picture of what my purpose is. NOW you can take away my juggling props and I'm not sunk. I have other tools at my finger tips to entertain and inspire.
I have this computer to write blogs for you to read, I have a microphone to record podcast interviews with people who inspire me, I have a camera in my pocket to make videos about whatever I want, I can write a book that might help one person find THEIR passion.
And maybe they'll find their purpose.
I sure hope so.
