Life is fun if you can find a purpose and passion

Look around and identify those people who seem lackluster, disillusioned and despondent. The one common thread in their life that significantly contributes to this state of living is the lack of purpose in their life and their inability to find a passion to motivate them. It is possible that at times each of us too has gone through the misery of facing a bleak and dreary day, week, month or at times a much longer period. So how does purpose and passion influence us? Is there a way to find our purpose and passion? How can I make best use of the purpose and passion that I identify? Answers to these three questions form the crux of today’s post.

So how does purpose and passion influence us?

Without a purpose, there is no worthwhile goal that we can pursue. It is the purpose that gives us a direction, a road map to the future and a reason to strive. The purpose in the short term could keep changing but it would be by and large be in sync with the larger purpose we have for our life mission. E.g. The purpose of going to school would initial start of as learning to read and write. As we progress the purpose would change to learning a wide variety of subjects. It could further change to getting degree. It could then change to being a stepping stone to a career. The larger purpose though could also change over time but it would be the outcome of thinking and reflection and would not change color as often as our short term purpose. E.g. I want to be a successful person. At some point this could change to I want to be a change agent in society or I hope to make a difference to the environment around or I just want to be a diligent, upright and respected citizen.

The passion is the fire in your belly that helps you peruse relentlessly the purpose set out. Without passion, you would lack the motivation, the commitment, the inspiration and zest to meet the challenges that are bound to crop up as you journey through life. Your passion makes the journey more endurable, the challenges more manageable and the goal more covetable.

Is there a way to find our purpose and passion?

Finding a purpose and passion in life is like finding the holy grail of life. It exists but it is incognito, it appears but fades quickly and it beckons seductively only to teasingly remain elusive. Yet it is possible for one to decipher it by focused attention and imaginative analysis. Focus on areas of interests, activities that excite you, areas in which you excel, aspects of life that engage your mind more often, arenas that capture your imagination. Be aware also of those topics, subjects, activities that you are most naturally drawn to or those about which you read more intensely or those that you have a natural flair for or skills that you are complimented for. Obviously there would be varied topics, subjects and activities that would vie for your attention at different times. Yet there would be a couple of areas that engage you much more than the others. Your purpose and passion are hidden in this little maze. With experience and maturity, fresh ideas, new thoughts and a changing world view would deeply influence and possibly alter your purpose and passion. E.g. Your passion could be photography and you find a purpose in documenting through photography wild life or news. Once you have achieved a measure of success and professionalism, your purpose could shift to sharing your expertise with others and your passion could change to being a teacher of the subject.

How can I make best use of the purpose and passion that I identify?

Learn with intensity – This is a lifelong purpose. While the subject experts and the text books will add tremendous value there is no substitute for experiential learning. Learn by using all the senses.

Explore with daring – The best experience is got when one moves out of the comfort zone and ventures into unknown territory all the time being aware of the risk but not being foolhardy.

Temper your purpose and passion – Expertise and success could be dizzying and tempt one to feel almost invincible and that is what one needs to be cautious about and avoid falling into the trap of being reckless or foolish.

Enjoy the process – There will always be challenges, doubts, frustrations and criticism along the way; but that should not let you not enjoy the larger process of pursing your purpose with passion.

Share whole heartedly– Whatever you achieve or any success you attain must be shared; this need be in monetary terms alone but also in terms of sharing the learning, encouraging others, disseminating information and being a friend philosopher and guide to those who are struggling along the way.

Try this:

Here is a picture shared with me. The task for you is to locate the leopard in the picture.

Identify one childhood passion/ dream that is not yet fulfilled. Over the next one month prepare a scrap book or PPT that will be testimony to others about how passionate you were about that dream.

How would you tackle the following situations if your spouse / best friend hates it.