Thanks for another great, well thought out and well written article. You always cover a lot in such a lovely way as to make me want to keep reading after the article has ended!
Some years ago I struggled with my ‘purpose’ in life (a bit related to the question, what is your passion?) and I kept coming up empty. But I was only thinking of my life in the corporate world. With much thought and soul searching I realized, at least as far as work was concerned, I was not following a passion but rather searching for what skill or service I could use to fill a needed niche. So that lead me to a realization that I was more service oriented. But again, only at work. I have a really super strong urge to be of service, to help others. I guess that could be a passion? I used to refer to myself as the best Second Banana (lol). Never wanting the spotlight, but always wanting to support others.
You may not be surprised to learn that in my personal life, I have a TON of passions! I am a lampworker. I make glass beads using a small bench-mounted torch that uses a surface mix of propane and oxygen. I use lovely glass rods from Italy to make my beads (they are quite large). I’m creating entire worlds when I sit at the torch! I LOVE cooking and baking and will seek out the most obscure ingredient for a dish I may only make once. A trip to a ‘world market’ or specialty shop is tops in my book. I am a devout foodie. I also love my continual study of all things psychic and am delving into mediumship. I adore all animals and at one time had around 15 pets. Ducks, chickens, geese, dogs, and horses. I have a rich dream world and pair that with my life’s learnings and psychic work, and am in the process of writing several books weaving it all together. I love working with power tools, tackling building my own front deck, laid laminate flooring in a tough (non—square area around corners and under doorways), doing all the woodwork, you name it, I want to fix or build it. So, for me, my passions don’t come out at work, but elsewhere. It’s something I often tell younger people that their passion may not be their job. If it IS, that’s icing on the cake. And I beat my head against a wall for decades thinking my ‘lack of passion’ at work made me a poser. Couldn’t be further from the truth!
I look forward to your next installment! And, thanks again.
Hi Patty, I think you'll discover from my article this week on Purpose that while there's a fine line between passion and purpose, the two are different. From what you've told me, you are terrific at living your passions--lots of them! You will inspire people who read your comments. Purpose, as you will read in this week's article, is more about doing things that feel meaningful to you. They give you a sense of purpose, usually because they help others or impact some aspect of the world in some way. These can become a career, but they don't need to be. It's great when our passions inspire a sense of purpose, and I won't be surprised if that's the case with some of yours. I am excited to hear what you say after reading the article on Purpose. Thanks so much for sharing. I really enjoyed your comments this week.
Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful inspirational writing. Truly, if I'm ever having a bad day, I can just read something you have written and it immediately shifts my energy, so thank you for your consistent genuineness and thoughtfulness! It helps me want to stay thoughtful and genuine too, just by asking myself questions, such as you posted here.
Whenever I think of living a passionate life, I get kinda scared...in fact, I usually can't get passed the most obvious question such as "what am I even passionate about?!" Believe it or not...that's a huge question for me that I usually come away scratching my head. Then once (or if) I get passed answering the first question....the next obvious question is..."well, how can I pay the bills with that"...which clearly is a buzz kill, let me tell you!
It usually comes down to money to me in the end, which sadly nearly always stops me from trying at all. I'm not proud of this dead end road that I consistently park my car at the end of the day, but am just being totally honest.
I also feel somewhat of a fraud to my 20 year old daughter when I tell her to follow her dreams, but I don't follow them myself...I just tend to dabble, with not a lot of follow-through. I'm really not trying to judge myself (because I mean...what the heck good is that going to do), but I also know that I need to be honest about where I am in my own mindset.
However, the good news is (and what you also talk about in your post) that thankfully "it is never too late to get started."
I think somehow we (or others like myself) have mistakenly placed a monetary value on passion and we have to first shift our attention from that and follow our passion simply because that is what burns inside us and is never fully extinguished ....just sort of lying dormant until we start to believe in ourselves and take action, I suppose.
So in all fairness, as much as I wanted to complete the exercise...I couldn't get passed the money part in my own mind...others may struggle there too, but I absolutely love that you are encouraging us to even think about passion...that in itself is priceless and will still keep the flame alive.
Hi Leasa, I think feeling like we have to earn a living from our passion is a societal issue. I'm not sure this is true in all cultures, but it certainly exists in ours. I have always felt this way, too. I've been fortunate to find ways to link my work and passions together, but many people do not.
I recall that in the late 90s, Melissa loved painting old furniture to give it new life. She had such a gift for painting whimsical colors and patterns that really spoke to children. She created entire bedrooms of children's furniture--bureaus, beds, and side tables. It all fell apart when she began selling it. She didn't want to sell it, and she didn't know how. She wanted to give it away, but we didn't have the abundance back then to buy furniture to paint and then give it away. She eventually had to stop because we didn't have room for all this furniture. I always felt sad for her because she had such a passion and talent for it.
As for your daughter, remember that children learn from their parents' example, even when the example isn't positive. My father abused alcohol, so I learned from his example to be cautious. Your daughter may have discovered that your lack of follow-through on your passions had a negative effect on you, so she may have learned from that example. If not, it's never to late to have that conversation with her. I'll bet that she'd appreciate it.
Now that you've read this and have had time to consider it, consider how you might live your passions without earning a living from them. For example, I took up the saxophone last year (I played for several years in grammar and middle school). I'll never be good enough to get paid for playing, but it makes my heart sing when I play it. I also love riding my mountain bike and motorcycle and regularly write stories that most people will never read. These are all examples of enjoying my passions without making money from them. I have no doubt that you can integrate your passions into your life as well. Please keep me informed. And thank you for your kind words and gratitude. They are well received.
Bob,
Thanks for another great, well thought out and well written article. You always cover a lot in such a lovely way as to make me want to keep reading after the article has ended!
Some years ago I struggled with my ‘purpose’ in life (a bit related to the question, what is your passion?) and I kept coming up empty. But I was only thinking of my life in the corporate world. With much thought and soul searching I realized, at least as far as work was concerned, I was not following a passion but rather searching for what skill or service I could use to fill a needed niche. So that lead me to a realization that I was more service oriented. But again, only at work. I have a really super strong urge to be of service, to help others. I guess that could be a passion? I used to refer to myself as the best Second Banana (lol). Never wanting the spotlight, but always wanting to support others.
You may not be surprised to learn that in my personal life, I have a TON of passions! I am a lampworker. I make glass beads using a small bench-mounted torch that uses a surface mix of propane and oxygen. I use lovely glass rods from Italy to make my beads (they are quite large). I’m creating entire worlds when I sit at the torch! I LOVE cooking and baking and will seek out the most obscure ingredient for a dish I may only make once. A trip to a ‘world market’ or specialty shop is tops in my book. I am a devout foodie. I also love my continual study of all things psychic and am delving into mediumship. I adore all animals and at one time had around 15 pets. Ducks, chickens, geese, dogs, and horses. I have a rich dream world and pair that with my life’s learnings and psychic work, and am in the process of writing several books weaving it all together. I love working with power tools, tackling building my own front deck, laid laminate flooring in a tough (non—square area around corners and under doorways), doing all the woodwork, you name it, I want to fix or build it. So, for me, my passions don’t come out at work, but elsewhere. It’s something I often tell younger people that their passion may not be their job. If it IS, that’s icing on the cake. And I beat my head against a wall for decades thinking my ‘lack of passion’ at work made me a poser. Couldn’t be further from the truth!
I look forward to your next installment! And, thanks again.
Hi Patty, I think you'll discover from my article this week on Purpose that while there's a fine line between passion and purpose, the two are different. From what you've told me, you are terrific at living your passions--lots of them! You will inspire people who read your comments. Purpose, as you will read in this week's article, is more about doing things that feel meaningful to you. They give you a sense of purpose, usually because they help others or impact some aspect of the world in some way. These can become a career, but they don't need to be. It's great when our passions inspire a sense of purpose, and I won't be surprised if that's the case with some of yours. I am excited to hear what you say after reading the article on Purpose. Thanks so much for sharing. I really enjoyed your comments this week.
Hi Bob:
Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful inspirational writing. Truly, if I'm ever having a bad day, I can just read something you have written and it immediately shifts my energy, so thank you for your consistent genuineness and thoughtfulness! It helps me want to stay thoughtful and genuine too, just by asking myself questions, such as you posted here.
Whenever I think of living a passionate life, I get kinda scared...in fact, I usually can't get passed the most obvious question such as "what am I even passionate about?!" Believe it or not...that's a huge question for me that I usually come away scratching my head. Then once (or if) I get passed answering the first question....the next obvious question is..."well, how can I pay the bills with that"...which clearly is a buzz kill, let me tell you!
It usually comes down to money to me in the end, which sadly nearly always stops me from trying at all. I'm not proud of this dead end road that I consistently park my car at the end of the day, but am just being totally honest.
I also feel somewhat of a fraud to my 20 year old daughter when I tell her to follow her dreams, but I don't follow them myself...I just tend to dabble, with not a lot of follow-through. I'm really not trying to judge myself (because I mean...what the heck good is that going to do), but I also know that I need to be honest about where I am in my own mindset.
However, the good news is (and what you also talk about in your post) that thankfully "it is never too late to get started."
I think somehow we (or others like myself) have mistakenly placed a monetary value on passion and we have to first shift our attention from that and follow our passion simply because that is what burns inside us and is never fully extinguished ....just sort of lying dormant until we start to believe in ourselves and take action, I suppose.
So in all fairness, as much as I wanted to complete the exercise...I couldn't get passed the money part in my own mind...others may struggle there too, but I absolutely love that you are encouraging us to even think about passion...that in itself is priceless and will still keep the flame alive.
Thanks for all you do for us.
In deep gratitude,
Leasa
Hi Leasa, I think feeling like we have to earn a living from our passion is a societal issue. I'm not sure this is true in all cultures, but it certainly exists in ours. I have always felt this way, too. I've been fortunate to find ways to link my work and passions together, but many people do not.
I recall that in the late 90s, Melissa loved painting old furniture to give it new life. She had such a gift for painting whimsical colors and patterns that really spoke to children. She created entire bedrooms of children's furniture--bureaus, beds, and side tables. It all fell apart when she began selling it. She didn't want to sell it, and she didn't know how. She wanted to give it away, but we didn't have the abundance back then to buy furniture to paint and then give it away. She eventually had to stop because we didn't have room for all this furniture. I always felt sad for her because she had such a passion and talent for it.
As for your daughter, remember that children learn from their parents' example, even when the example isn't positive. My father abused alcohol, so I learned from his example to be cautious. Your daughter may have discovered that your lack of follow-through on your passions had a negative effect on you, so she may have learned from that example. If not, it's never to late to have that conversation with her. I'll bet that she'd appreciate it.
Now that you've read this and have had time to consider it, consider how you might live your passions without earning a living from them. For example, I took up the saxophone last year (I played for several years in grammar and middle school). I'll never be good enough to get paid for playing, but it makes my heart sing when I play it. I also love riding my mountain bike and motorcycle and regularly write stories that most people will never read. These are all examples of enjoying my passions without making money from them. I have no doubt that you can integrate your passions into your life as well. Please keep me informed. And thank you for your kind words and gratitude. They are well received.