A global theme each February is Passion, with Valentine’s day falling on Feb 14. There is a chapter on Passion in my new book, Outrageous Achievement, coming out Feb 23. (Click here to get a free excerpt, bonus materials, and be the first to know when the book is available.)
For years I’ve been struck with the recognition that when I follow my passions, I create more joy, success and empowering in my life.
And yet, it’s not uncommon to realize how often I am NOT living or pursuing passion. It’s crazy.
Why do we stop doing the things we love?
I pose this question in the book and to answer it, I found myself going on a journey. Let me share it with you now.
Why do we stop doing the things we love? I was inspired flush this out; so I opened my journal and began a Q & A dialogue with myself. Under the header of “Passion” I wrote the question, “What do I love to do that I’m not doing?”
Three answers immediately came to mind:
- Skeet shooting
- Living in the mountains
- Traveling internationally for work and play
Next, I listed the reasons why these Passions were not currently a part of my life. I was shocked to discover how quickly the excuses came, how strongly I believed them, and even worse, how I’d never questioned my excuses before. I was in essence, “missing out” by choice.
- Skeet shooting: “I LOVE to shoot but I don’t have the time. The closest gun club with a skeet range is 90 minutes away at Camp Pendleton, and there’s usually a long wait to get on the shooting range. It’ll be an 8-hour day.”
- Living in the mountains: “I’d LOVE to buy a second home somewhere in the mountains, but it’s not financially feasible right now.”
- Traveling internationally: “I want to see the world and combine my LOVE of travel with my passion to speak and inspire. But I don’t have any international prospects on the immediate horizon.”
With this realization, I am on fire with ideas! I know I can start making progress with every one of these dreams. I’ll create a plan, investigate my options, think without limits, and make a commitment to bring these passions into my life.
I continued by listing the actions I can take right now to move in the direction of my dreams. I put my Bias Toward Action into practice!
Skeet shooting:
- Google “gun clubs in San Diego”. Maybe there’s a new skeet club close by I’m not aware of.
- Call Camp Pendleton and see if there are any particular days when they’re not so busy.
- Visit a local gun club and shoot trap. (Same gun, different game). Who knows? Maybe it will turn out to be as much fun as skeet. It’s worth a try.
Living in the mountains:
- Talk to my financial guy. Let’s start with a budget.
- Make a list of the top 5 areas I’d like to live in.
- Reach out to a realtor in each area and get the price range I’ll be looking at.
Traveling internationally:
- Make a list of the speakers I know who work internationally and ask for their advice.
- Send notes to my clients asking for international referrals.
- Google professional organizations based overseas. Select at least five and reach out with a note of introduction.
This exercise lit me right up! And that’s what pursuing your Passion does. And hell, I wasn’t even living them yet. By simply identifying doable steps to bring them to life, I got excited! And I got motivated!