Are you feeling lethargic? Have you hit a wall or a ceiling as if your potential is leaking out and you can’t seem to put the pieces back together? Can you look at your life so far and say you are proud of the choices you’ve made and the accomplishments you have? If you feel like you have accomplished some things but there is more in you than this could be you. However, if you look back and feel like you have nothing to show for your life, than this is definitely for you. You, perhaps, have yet to tap into your potential. You may not be living your life from your passion.
In 1999, Dr. Richard Chang wrote a book called The Passion Plan. Chang recognized that there was a major determinate to those who lived lives filled with vibrance and significance and those who don’t. According to Chang, it’s people who do not unlock their passion. In the book, Chang outlines 7 steps to help people discover their passion. Discovering one’s passion has proven to be a difficult endeavor for various reasons. Some of the reasons Chang cites in the book are “fear, self-doubt, paralysis, numbness, limited scope, procrastination, and caution.” Are any of those things present in your life right now? If so, and you are ready to make some moves that will shift the trajectory of your life, you might be in the position to pursue your passion.
What is passion? Many people agree that passion is a strong motivation mixed with deep emotions, but the question is, are those things positive or negative? Some don’t pursue their passion because they have had terrible experiences connected to it. Perhaps a parent pushing their passion on a child, or the passion of the organization to win allows caring for people to fall through the cracks. Passion, in this instance, is over the top and does more harm than good. On the other hand, passion researcher Robert Vallerand has resolved that “passion is what makes life worth living” which is what Dr. Chang gets into in his book.
Studies have shown that harmonious passion was found to be positively related to life satisfaction and vitality. Harmonious passion vs. obsessive passion is the challenge many are facing as it pertains to living a life fueled by passion. If you are the kind of person dealing with some of the challenges cited earlier in this article from Dr. Chang’s book but get an uneasy feeling thinking about having your passion being what bursts you out of those challenges, you will likely need a coach to help you through understanding the difference between harmonious and obsessive passion. Getting clear on the differences and taking inventory of the pieces of your story that have been affected by obsessive passion could be what unlocks the door for you to reach your potential.
Whatever you have been pursuing, if you are able to develop and pursue your passion with clarity and intention, you might find significance on the other side that propels you in the achievement of all your dreams and goals. Here are some ideas that will help you in your passion pursuit.
Balance discovery with development
Oftentimes, people are waiting for their passion to find them when they actually need to make passion part of their journey. Our passion should be developed, which leads to a discovery, not just of one’s passion, but of one’s self. Studies have shown that if we believe our passion to be in a fixed space in time it will decrease zeal for life, lowers desire for discovery, and often halts passion pursuits. When we develop our passion, we often find a deeper zest for life.
Lead with your passion, but don’t let your passion lead you
Some people say to follow your passion and others tell you not to. The reason why is because your passion will lead you to personal fulfillment, but if you have other responsibilities, it will likely lead you to failure in connection. Some people tend to live their passion and end up leaving others behind like family members, co-workers, and friends. Instead of allowing the drive for passion to lead your life, use your passion to attract good things and people to you, then step outside of that passion and live in the moment.
Elizabeth Gilbert, in her book Eat, Pray, Love, speaks of a friend who lacks the ability to be present. When the friend states that she loves what she is experiencing and cannot wait to come back, Gilbert responds, “It takes all my persuasive powers to try to convince her that she’s already here.” Don’t allow your passion to lead you away from the beauty of where you are.
Live life on the other side of your passion
Our passion is not the destination. As you start to develop your passion, begin to plan how your life will look because of how you pursue your passion. Often, we think that everything will just align perfectly when we have grasped that brass ring of passion. In reality, there is more to life than your passion. Make your passion part of your life, not your whole reason for existing in life. It will make you a less easy target for people to take advantage of as we spoke about earlier.
Guard your passion
Some interesting research states that passionate people often get taken advantage of when others realize where their passions are. We’ve all seen that person that loves what they do so much that others will encourage them to do more and more. Typically, these people are beloved
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