Passion is that thing that sets your soul on fire, the part of you that comes alive when you are doing what you love. You can feel it in every cell in your body. Some people believe that your passions are best explored as hobbies, and not as a career choice. I disagree. I think that if something ignites that spark within you, then you need to share that light with the world, hence making your passion your purpose in life.
I remember an old boss of mine once telling me that if I was as passionate about my job as I was about my volunteer work, then we would all be very wealthy. I was working in a high energy, commission based sales environment at the time. I was great at my job, and I was great at motivating other people on my team to be great at their jobs, but I was honestly not really feeling it. Just because you are good at something, does not mean that it is the career route that you are meant to take. Success does not define purpose. Passion has to align with purpose if you truly want to live a life that excites you in every possible way. So, what advice do I have to give you on how to let your passion become your purpose? Well, I am a creative who also has a highly analytical side, so I like to have a plan to reach a solution. Read on, and let's see if any of this resonates with you. Here are my tips for turning your passion into your purpose in life.
1) Make a list of the things that truly excite you in life. In other words, if money were not an option, what would you be doing on a daily basis? Get very visual and descriptive with this list. How do you feel when you are doing each of these things? How would you feel if you could not do them? What parts excite you?
2) Now that you have your list of passions, what is the first thing on that list that stands out for you as being the most prominent? What would be your top priority if you could only do one thing for the rest of your life? This should be a pretty quick gut reaction. Trust your instinct.
3) With your main passion in hand, think of all of the ways that you can use this passion to help others. In other words, how will you make money doing what you love? For instance, if surfing is your passion, then maybe you could open a store that sells surfing equipment or give surfing lessons to beginners. Set a timer for 15 minutes, and do a complete brain dump, writing down every possible idea that comes to mind. Don't analyze each option as you go; just write whatever pops into your mind. You can refine your results later.
4) After your list is complete, take out a red marker and circle the top 3 things that sound exciting to you. Don't overthink it, just pick the top 3 ideas that stir something inside of you. Once you are done with that, then cross out your least favorite idea of the three.
5) You are now left with two options of possible ways that you can turn your passion into your purpose. How exciting is this? We are getting closer. Now you are ready to dig a little deeper and finalize your idea. Place these two ideas side by side on a sheet of paper, and write out the pros/cons of each idea. Set a timer for 5 minutes and list all of the pros of the first idea, and then do the same for the second idea. Repeat this process with the cons of each option. (Notecards work well for this too.)
6) Now that you have listed all of the possibilities and the roadblocks for each of these two options, pick the one option that resonates most with you. At this point, there is usually an obvious choice, even if you are trying to fight it. Listen to your intuition. What do you want to do?
7) You have now made a decision for how you can turn your passion into your purpose. It is time to come up with a game plan. Start brainstorming on what your day to day will look like. Are you going to start your own business or work for someone else? Will you have a brick and mortar location, or will this be an online business? What credentials do you need to perform this new career? How much startup capital will you need if you are starting a business? Will you have employees/partners, or will you start this journey by yourself? Where will you work? How many hours will you need/want to work? This is the place to list everything that you will need to know and have in order to make this dream a reality. Be specific, and do the research if need be.
8) Now that you know where you want to go, and how you need to get there, it is time to come up with a timeline. If you are working a full-time job right now, figure out what hours you can devote to your passion career. You may need to stay in your current job until you start to make a livable income from your passion. That is okay because you have a plan. The end and the new beginning are both on the horizon. This is the time to put yourself on a budget as well, so that you can save as much money as you can to have a cushion for when you cut the cord and release the safety net. Make sure to take an inventory of what you have in savings, vacation time, medical savings accounts, etc. All of this will help you to determine what the timeline will be for going full throttle into your dream business. Set a timeline with manageable deadlines so that you can see progress along the way. This will keep you motivated and moving in the right direction. Give yourself mini goals like setting up an LLC, opening a business account, ordering business cards, and setting up social media. The more you start to get done, the more your vision starts to feel real.
9) Ignore the "dream killers" in your life. There will always be the people in your life in the form of friends and family who will try and talk you out of following your passion. Listen to what they have to say, smile politely, thank them for their concern, and keep moving forward anyway. Most people are risk-adverse, so they will try to dim your light by listing all of the ways that you could fail. They think that they are being helpful. They are not. These people are okay being a cog in the wheel. Just remember, that there would be no wheel had someone not taken the risk to go out and try something new. Let your passion inspire you to move forward. By doing so, you will inspire others to do the same. No pressure.
10) Breathe. Pause. Try again. There will be roadblocks along the way. There will be times when you will want to stop and run back and wrap yourself up in the security blanket of the corporate bed. Don't do it. It is a tumultuous affair that does not end well. You should never go back to a place where you do not want to be, no matter the reason. You will be tempted, but just take a moment to regroup, get your shit together, straighten your crown, and move on ahead.
So, I have given you a broad outline of how to turn your passion into your purpose in life. There are many details to fill in along the way, and many of them will keep evolving as you spread your wings and grow into who you are meant to be. Just remember that there is no perfect straight path from where you are to where you want to be. There will be ups and downs. The beautiful thing is that you will grow in the process, and so will your courage and determination. When you get stressed out and tired on this new journey, learn to pause and rest, not to quit. Let your passion fuel the fire inside of you. It will light the way to where you need to be. Then, when the time comes, you can pass the torch and inspire others to spark the passion that leads them to their purpose too. Go fly my beautiful butterflies.
With Love and Gratitude,
Matchmaker Lisa Maria