Achievement Drive - The key to finding your passion
- frankquattromani
- Mar 14, 2022
- 4 min read
There are many doors that lead to success, happiness and fulfillment – but don’t pick the lock, find the right key.
When life gives you lemons you make lemonade, right? But what if you want to make orange juice, or even a spicy margarita? The one size fits all approach to finding your passion in this funny thing called life is a myth, and yet so many people fall into the trap of basing their future off the ideas of others.
You want to find your passion in life? First, you have to find you.
For most, every day starts the same: Wake up, get up and get going but if you have found that the get going bit is taking longer with each sunrise then you may be lacking in the passion department. And it’s not an easy thing to be lacking in. Passion is the driving force behind some of the greatest and most impactful moments in history. From Paris and Helen of Troy’s love affair kick-starting the Trojan War to Usain Bolt winning three consecutive 100m and 200m sprint titles in the Olympics, the common thread between these unrelated events is passion. The passion to be and the passion to do.
Whether you feel unsatisfied in your current role and are seeking new opportunities or want to reignite old passions that died once you hit the 9–5 grind, the only tool you need is self-awareness. An invaluable piece of the 'finding your passion' puzzle.
Psychology Today explains: ‘Humans…are one entity and trying to separate work from life is virtually impossible.’ While you might think this is negative, the trick is to harness this way of thinking in a practical way. You take yourself with you everywhere, so if your work is impacted by you, and you are impacted by your work, gain control of the situation by getting to know yourself better.
If you have found yourself thinking that you are not being who you want to be or doing what you want to do, it can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be a life sentence.
You have the answers, you might just be asking the wrong questions. Start with these instead:
What is something that you get so lost in that you lose track of time?
What topic do you never get bored of discussing?
What is something you want to be known/remembered for?
What can’t you live without?
What stresses you out? Or makes you feel drained?
Give these some thought, and not just a little deliberation, dig deep. Write a list, talk it through with someone or draw a mind map if it will help you be as honest as possible. You can even try out these five creative exercises from Entrepreneur to get your brain ticking.
Once you have your answers, break them down into achievable goals that can be implemented in reality – and no, they don’t have to be moulded into your 9–5. For example: If you answered question one with ‘poetry’ it doesn’t mean you need to stow yourself away, dress like Sylvia Plath and write a villanelle on the pain of existence. You can still work at your current job and keep your routine but now it’s time to be pro-active about joining a poetry class or starting a club. This allows you to sprinkle your passion into the gaps that your life has presented and actively pursue it without the stress of dramatic and sudden change.
You don’t need to completely uphaul your life to put your passion into play, simple forward-moving acts can satisfy the fear of missing out on your calling. And while we all know the saying ‘do what you love and you will never work another day in your life’ – reality has a response, and it comes in the form of cost of living. Work is important, and work is necessary but for all of the times it is not, your passion is.
We understand that not everyone has the luxury to quit their job, change career paths and jump head first into the passion of their choosing, safe in the knowledge that their personal and professional lives will fruitfully align. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t find beauty and satisfaction in balance, as Lifehacker explains: ‘It's pretty unlikely that you'll find a career doing exactly what you love to do, but that's okay. All you need to do is to find room in your life for the things that make your heart sing.’
Not every day will be passionate, and not every day will feel like you have a handle on your purpose, but every day is another day to keep chipping away at your passion – whether it’s your career, or not. Passion never stops, only you do. So, keep moving. Take the lemons that life is handing you from its ever-growing garden and make a delicious drink that quenches your own unique thirst.
If you already know your passion, share with us what sets your soul on fire.
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