While the topic of this article is about passion, energy and commitment, the article will focus primarily on passion and energy as they are the keys to commitment.
What is passion?
A lot is said about finding your passion, doing things with passion, working with passion. But what does it really mean?
To quote Oprah Winfrey, passion is energy. And this is what passion does for you:
- It’s a driving force inside of you.
- It shapes you, inspires you and excites you all at once.
- It sets you on fire, keeps the fire going and drives you to accomplish anything you set your mind to.
- It’s one of the key driving forces to a successful, fulfilled and happier life.
- It gives meaning to your life and makes every moment of your existence literally tingle with purpose.
“Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.”
~ Oprah Winfrey
How do you find your passion?
To explore your passion, you first need to identify things that:
- Come naturally to you.
- You love to do.
- Excite you.
This will require you to complete the process of de-cluttering. De-cluttering will remove all the things in your life that are unimportant and not adding value.
Next, start appreciating and valuing yourself and your time. This will increase your confidence and self-awareness.
Your passion – what you love doing – will rise naturally to the surface when you become authentic with yourself.
Passion is an inside job. No one can create it for you. Don’t wait till the time or circumstances are right.
Characteristics of passionate people
Passionate people have the following common characteristics. They:
- Love and accept themselves as they are, complete in themselves.
- Set goals and prioritize things in their work and personal life.
- Avoid distractions and take necessary steps to eliminate them.
- Have a good balance in life – they work hard and play hard (within limits of course).
- Treat themselves right, eat right, exercise, rest well.
- Are objective and see the positive side of most situations.
- Rarely dwell on the negative.
- Focus on solutions rather than problems.
- Aren’t afraid to dream big and have great expectations and ideas.
- Surround themselves with people who have positive energy and vibes.
Does this describe you? If not, then you have a checklist to start working with. Find an aspect of your work or life that excites and motivates you. Allow this to fill your life with passion and energy.
Passion and income
When you observe the highest paid people in the world, you’ll notice a common thread for a lot of them.
They’re passionate about what they do. In return, they get paid amazing amounts of money doing what they love.
This is not true just for sportsmen and women, actors and actresses, musicians, and the like. Look around you and observe keenly and you will see many career people who truly love what they do.
What’s common is that these people have turned their passion into a career, business or source of income. In this way, work becomes play.
At Biashara 360, we know this for a fact because we get paid very well-doing something we love to do. Being coaches goes beyond just earning a living, it’s something we love so much that we never consider it work.
Love what you do, do what you love
You don’t have to be an Oprah in order to turn work into play, you can start where you are by finding an aspect of your work or life that excites and motivates you. Do more of this and your life will be filled with energy.
But…what if you can’t find anything that excites you right now? Or maybe you’re in a job or career that you really hate? Or the business you once loved has become worse than a job and you now hate thinking of it?
That’s where we come in. Let us help you think things through in a Strategy Session where you’ll not only find the clarity that you seek, but will also identify at least one thing you can start doing to make your life more exciting.
How does passion create energy and commitment?
Ultimately, energy naturally emanates from passion. It’s very difficult to find someone who is passionate about something lacking energy – the two go hand in hand.
When you embrace your inner passion, it releases abundant energy towards overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
Once you have passion and energy, anything that you focus on or commit to becomes achievable. Commitment is the dedication of your time and energy to something that you believe in and want.
An alignment of passion, energy and commitment is a recipe for success and excellence. Find your passion and allow it to spearhead you into success.
“You have to be burning with an idea, or a problem, or a wrong that you want to right. If you’re not passionate enough from the start, you’ll never stick it out.”
~ Steve Jobs
Try this to create more passion and energy
1. Celebrate yourself!
Take some time over a weekend (about 2 hours) and do the following:
- Make a list of your accomplishments: Go as far back as you can remember and list out all things you’ve achieved – big or small.
- List the things you like about yourself: Don’t be shy…blow your trumpet as loud as you can!
- Plan to celebrate: When planning for the next week, make a plan to celebrate yourself and your accomplishments. It’s a way of ‘thanking’ yourself for work well done.
Don’t skip the celebration. It also doesn’t have to be big or elaborate. Even a simple pat on the back or treating yourself out to a special meal is good enough.
Celebrating yourself increases your confidence and self-esteem – two key ingredients for a more fulfilling life.
2. Relax and rest more
It’s highly beneficial to have at least one rest day each week. This is not just useful to your body and mind. It also helps you identify and enjoy doing things you love and spend time with your loved ones.
Everything we do as we run around in the rat race actually leads nowhere. And the more we chase success, the more we lose bits of who we are in the process.
When you let go of trying to do everything, to be everywhere, and to be everything to everyone, then you will find peace.
Is your life lacking passion and energy?
What if you can’t find anything that excites you in your life, career, job or business? If you feel that you’ve lost the energy, passion and zest that you once had, talk to us. Let us help you think things through in a Strategy Session where you’ll not only find the clarity that you seek, but will also identify at least one thing you can start doing to infuse your life with more passion and energy.
(Main image courtesy of: Unsplash)
