What is passion?

by Rhoda Taylor
(Jackson MS)

Question:

What is passion?I dont know what I have a passion for. I do alot of things. I have my hand in a few things but not really sure what I actually have a Passion for.


Answer:

What is passion? This is a tough one for some people and ridiculously simple for others. I find it is most difficult for those that are good at a number of things and are interested in a number of things. I myself tend to fall into that category.

Passion is a powerful or compelling emotion or feeling toward a thing, an idea, a cause, or an act. For some of us we have a lot of passions, for others only one or two. Those who are passionate about only a few things find it easy to follow their passion, for the rest of us, however it takes a little digging to discover that which we are most passionate about.

You can be passionate about different things at different times in your life as well. First I will demonstrate what passion is, then I will teach you how to discover your own passion.

Today I had an 8 year old come to my door and ask if he could rake my leaves for $15.00, Now I have a big yard and it normally takes me all day to do it myself. I said, to the young little guy, "this is a big task and it will probably take you most of the day are you sure you want to take on this task?," He said to me, "Yes mam' for $15.00 I can get a bike at the thrift store so, I will work in your yard all day if I have to." It’s been two hours since he started and he is still at work and when his friend asked to help he said no thank you I’m working for a bike. 8 years old, and he is so passionate about getting that bike that the work he has to do to earn it doesn’t mean much at all.

Now, if this were a chore he had to do instead of a way to earn money for his bike, I imagine after two hours this little guy would have thrown in the towel. It is his passion for the bike that drives him.

Your challenge is to find that passion that will drive you. What is passion to you? Weather it is the work you do, who you do the work for or what at the end of the day you accomplish.

In my early 20’s I owned a small gift shop, it didn’t earn enough to keep the doors open, but I was passionate about the shop so, I took a part time bartending job I could work in the evenings, to pay the bills and I worked in the shop everyday to feed my passion.

Passions change and our job is to know when that happens and how to discover what we are now passionate about and what we are going to do about it.

Discovering Your Passion/ What is Passion and what does it look like?

How do you find your passion? There are a few questions you can ask yourself to help you find your passion.

1) What are my favorite hobbies? Baking, sewing, photography, wood work, laundry, animals. You may say some of that sounds like work, not a hobby, but let me assure you, to some it is not only a hobby but, a love. I acutely have a friend that absolutely loves to do laundry, Not me, to me laundry is definitely a chore.

2) What did you love to do as a child? It is said we are who we are going to be by the time we are 10 years old. I remember as a child, I loved to take things apart and put them back together, I loved to figure out how things worked. I loved to write. I loved to teach others how to do new things, I also would make crafts and sell them door to door while my friends were raking leaves and shoveling driveways to earn money. I loved to write too. O’ and Photography, well lets just say Love is not a strong enough word for it.

3) What is it one thing you do, to escape from your day? For me it is writing and photography. If I’ve had a rough week I will take a day and spend it on the road photographing things that most people never notice or I might sit down and write a poem or a story.

4) What are you really good at? What is it that others say you are really good at. For me it is photography, writing (not grammar I might add) and customer relations.

5)What makes you smile? What makes you sit back and say ah, yes.? I have those moments every time I connect with a child on their level.

Now, once you ask yourself these questions, look for some commonalities. What is passion for you? For me it is writing and photography, teaching and connecting with others. Once you can identify some of these commonalities, start looking at things that incorporate these things. You may find that you love to teach and you love to build websites. Maybe your passion is to Teach a web building class. Could be your really good at sewing and you love sports, so you start a sports apparel business.

I just ordered the coolest thing. It was a bracelet with a hand made bead. The bead was made from a rose I took from my grandmothers funeral. The gal that does this loves roses and the idea of creating a unique memory for loved ones. Her business is booming. I know my family has ordered several pieces of jewelry from her.

Finding your passion is really all about rediscovering what you really love, what your really good at and putting those things together to create your life’s work. Passion doesn’t always have to be the work you do, sometimes it’s what you get to do after the work is done, that is your true passion, like the little guy that is still outside raking the leaves.

I hope when you discover your passion, you will come back and share it with us.