Passions That Pay

One of the mottoes for the Passion Project is that anyone can follow their passion, all they need is a plan.

So today’s post is looking at the fundamentals of following your passion so that you can evaluate and start sowing the seeds of a plan.

1. Follow the fun and joy. Look at what in your life brings you a sense of joy. What does fun mean to you? Write a list of things and put a start next to the top three. If you really have no idea then have a look at these posts on getting in touch with your emotions to help you get to this point.

2. Which of these activities are also meaningful to you? Baking a cake is fun for a lot of people but truly meaningful to only a few. Meaning is a very personal thing and normally there is some resonance with some deep part of you. What activities bring you a deep level of satisfaction? Try to narrow it down and get as specific as possible. If you believe that it is part of your purpose to help people, then narrow it down to how you would most like to help people. Think about both the ways you enjoy helping and those you don’t. For instance for me nursing would be high on my lists of things I don’t want to do. Also, as an example, I prefer to help people with positive things rather than helping them through negative things.

3. What are your present skills and talents? List them all, everything from being able to put on a duvet cover in under 5 minutes to being able to make yourself understood by someone who doesn’t speak the same language as you. Try to really think outside the box. Ask people who know you well to help as sometimes a skill feels so natural to us we assume everyone has it. Are you really good at making people feel comfortable around you? Have you organized your office so that everything is at hand? Also note down areas in which you enjoy learning and could easily acquire new skills in.

4. What are your existing conditions? Do you need a certain income level? Do you have any health challenges? Do you have responsibilities in your life that would have to be taken into consideration such as caring for children or an elderly relative? Do you have a spouse who moves regularly due to the military or a job related reasons?

5. Take the list you made at the beginning and start brainstorming possible opportunities. Go W-I-D-E here. If singing is high up on your list don’t just zoom in on rock star, think about everything from singing jingles to karaoke! Let the ideas spin around your head for a few days and every time you think of an opportunity write it down - even if it’s something you would never actually do as you never know what can spin off from one idea. For example you might know you would never want to own a restaurant but maybe you would love to be a restaurant critic or have a website devoted to local restaurants.

Look at your 5 separate lists and start looking for commonalities and things which fit across the board. Look for ways that you could start moving towards living your passion. What would be your next step? Research? Learning a new skill? Putting money aside so you can eventually quit your job? What would be the next step after that? By putting down the next few steps, you have formed yourself a plan that will continue to expand until you have created the life that you always dreamed of and you will have reached it one step at a time.

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