Many people, particularly as they accumulate years of work experience, find they have a growing desire to put passion into their life and career. As we grow in life experiences a lot of the excitement or “newness” diminishes. We simply have been there and done that enough that our threshold for what will rock our world continues to go up. It’s increasingly harder to get that same level of excitement.
As we recognize that this element of excitement is missing, it can trigger us to go in search of something we can feel passionate about. The biggest issue with going in search of your life and career passion is: How do you find your passion?
All too many people think that your passion just comes to you like a thunderbolt from the heavens. In other words, we think for some people it just magically appears. This leaves the rest of us to feel unlucky because the magic hasn’t happened. Finding your passion is something we all have access to. It might seem magical, but it is simply a process, like most things in our lives, and requires turning off the TV and taking some actions.
Here are 5 simple steps that will lead you to finding your passion:
- Start first with what you already know you’re interested in. Sit down and write out a list of all the things you have some interest in trying, but never have. Your whole process requires self honesty and it starts here.
- Make goals. Create your list of goals, and prepare to take action towards those goals. Like all great goals, they have the characteristics of 1) being specific 2) having a time for completion 3) and are actionable.
- Get curious and go in search. Your biggest asset on your quest to find passion is to get curious about your environment and what other people are doing. Ask questions. Surround yourself with people who are passionate about the work they are doing or with people on a quest like you. Having others in your life, who are excited about life, will drive your process forward. It’s great to have daily doses of inspiration.
- Record your results in writing. To get the most out of your exploration, you need to spend time in introspection. You need to think about each action you take and your reactions to them. This will help you understand what works for you and what doesn’t.
- Repeat. Don’t try something just once. Continue to move through the steps exploring, experimenting and learning until you discover the passion you are looking for in your life.
Once found, follow your passion and you will find the power to awaken the beauty of the world and bring it into your life.