Wednesday 13 February 2013

Passion part 2. If money didn't matter.

Ok.  I'll try not to become one of those bloggers who's like, "THE SIX ONLY WAYS YOU CAN BE HAPPY IN LIFE."  As though I'm trying to get published on the landing page you land on when you log out of... uh, hotmail.... Sorry.  I forgot I was the only one left with a hotmail account.

A couple astute comments and questions since my last post led me to consider that maybe your passion is more than the flip side of the coin of what gets you riled up in life.

So, I'm scrolling through facebook, and one of my friends posted this:
It seems like the kind of question that you've been asked or asked yourself a thousand times before.  But then one time, the concept sperm finds its way through and impregnates your idea brain.  A hundred times before I heard that and didn't care.  But today it snapped my head back like a right jab.

If I knew I'd always have a place to live, my family would be fed, and I'd have the care I need when I reach my twilight years, what the heck would I do with my time?  That question got me a lot closer to finding my passion than thinking about what ticked me off, which mostly just, well, ticked me off.

My gut response kind of surprised me.  I would befriend people.  And I would help them.  Not capital H Help.  I'm not trying to 'fix' people.  But if someone needed a painter, and I had a friend who paints, bam! Double win!  If someone had a really cool business idea, and I knew the perfect person to help them to the next step, I'd connect them.  I'd help people move furniture.  I'd help them with relationships.  I'd help them make the next professional move.  I'd help people.  Because people need friends.  And they need people who are willing to help. 

And that's what I want to do.  When I am doing that, I feel alive. I think they call that networking.  But I kind of hate that word.  Because it's usually said with a smug undertone, as if people mean, "schmoozing", a slimy word for something greasy salespeople do to make sales at any cost.

So, then, as my friend Justin puts it, "how do you make that pay your mortgage?"  Well, good question.  But if I identify befriending people and helping people as key motivators for me, maybe it will just permeate my approach to my current work, and guide my professional decisions as they need to be made.

But more importantly, if I know this about myself, I am that much closer to springing out of bed every morning with purpose.

Befriending people.  Helping people.  It's so simple it almost sounds silly.  And maybe it sounds stupid to you.  That's okay.  It doesn't have to be your 'thing.'  In fact, I hope yours is different and complimentary.  Because if we can get a bunch of people who are really excited to do complimentary things, that helps me accomplish what I'm excited about!  I'll send people your way if they need what you're offering.

So, imagine that your family is taken care of for good.  As are you.  What would you spend As Much Time As Possible on?  Maybe it's a little embarassing.  That's fine - a lot of the things that are close to your heart are - because you REALLY don't want someone speaking flippantly about things that are so important to you.

I hope you find something.  If you do, and you've got the guts, post it below.  I'd love to hear it.

2 comments:

  1. You should go find Dan Pink's Ted talk about motivation, and see what he says about helping people find a passion.

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  2. Sounds like a teacher... maybe Nate and I should not have discouraged you from entering the teaching profession... You would be amazing at it:)

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