Every individual on the planet has an opportunity to pursue that heart-pounding passion he or she has in life. In order for you to chase your true passion, you would have to own one first. To find that thing one would really love doing has proven to be quite difficult due to the traditional life expectations we have and economic hardships. Here is a brief guide that will help you figure out how to discover your passion that will arouse your enthusiasm on something and give meaning to life.
1. Reflect on Your Life
One thing you have to do is to remember all the great dreams and goals you’ve ever had throughout your life, right from when you were a youngster to now, where you are at the moment. Whether you’re a teenager, in your twenty’s or an adult, you must have had that dream, that goal and that priceless ambition run through your mind. That something you really like doing or want to do that would keep you going day after day without much push from external forces will certainly lead you to know your passion. Put these goals on paper so that you never forget to work on them.
2. Eliminate the Fear to Attempt
Break free of that fear or worry of what others might think when you choose to pursue a dream or even opt to deviate from normal life. A person who goes to school just to get a job that will pay the bills then later gets a mortgage is pretty much standard. That is the life of a person who prefers to play safe. What we have today is a chance to make the best choice from a wide range of possibilities. Do not fail to try, period. Just give that thing a chance, listen keenly if you’re being taught about keys on a piano by a friend.
“I really don’t think life is about the I-could-have-beens. Life is only about the I-tried-to-do. I don’t mind the failure but I can’t imagine that I’d forgive myself if I didn’t try.” Nikki Giovanni
3. Try out New Activities and Take on Challenges
Has someone ever told you that you don’t know what you’re missing? Well, you definitely don’t unless you’ve really tried. Be it writing, skiing, skate boarding, playing chess, sports, math, arts and design, teaching, modeling or racing among other activities. Quickly master the courage to get out of that comfort zone. Be ambitious, try new things and never be worried about what other people think. So long as what you do is positive and makes you feel that you are your own self. That thing that you do without realizing huge chunks of time elapsing. Almost anything could be your passion
4. Ask people Around You and Listen
Your close friends, family or relatives should be able to guide you to discover your talents and passion. All you have to do is ask. These people know you well, with the loads of time you spend around each other. They might have seen something in you that you yourself haven’t noticed yet. You also may have dropped some hints of potential in an area along the way. Listen to what they have to say about what you love doing. This may be vital in unlocking your passion. There are a lot of good things in the world we live in today. Your passion should be part of that. Make it your everyday goal to become a better person by improving your life skills and understanding the meaning of life itself. When you finally have all these in order, sit down, analyze what your friends suggest you can be good at, reflect and discover.
5. Find out what you can do with ease
Your strengths and passion may lie at that thing you handle with little effort whereas others struggle or take more time tackling. When you are above average at something, it takes more practice to get to the very top. It actually isn’t that hard to excel at anything. All it takes is to identifying that particular passion and working hard on it with everything you can. It is the effort and commitment that will take you places. To stand out of the crowd, you have to practice. Putting to work what you can do easily so that it gets much easier will enhance your passion.
6. Think of the topics you repeatedly talk to others about
The subject you go on and on about while talking to others like cars, tech, current affairs, swimming techniques may just be enough to signal you in discovering your passion. There are times you feel like educating your peers on a subject, getting down to every detail. Think of those sentences you can easily start with ‘Did you know…’ and then follow with informative words and specifics. It may also be that you love talking about how to make money out of something in a uniquely amazing way. You must also be through that moment when somebody brings up a topic you are well versed with and your inner self just wants to burst out endless words. Well, that may just be it. See what you can do to make that subject practical. You can transform it to become your passion.
7. Create Time to Search
Life is too short. I know we have all heard of that saying too many times. Well, it’s true, time is a scarce resource. It also has a high demand. Every human being has an equal amount of time. It is what we do with it that makes the difference. Most of us easily fall subject to the normal responsibilities and pressures of life. You do not have to be an accountant to be successful in life. Create time to find your thing. Avoid distractions and learn to say no to things that are not important. If you are too busy during the day, find some time to work on something before you go to bed. Good judgement also comes from experience. Get yourself thoroughly informed and learn from other people’s past experiences so that you do not waste time and hit a dead end in the long run. Create a list of some of the things you want to create time for. Eliminate the things you know that waste your time.
8. Build on existing skills
At some point, you must have acquired a skill or had an opportunity to play an instrument. You may not have given it much time or attention as it would otherwise deserve. Ask yourself whether you enjoyed the short amount of time you spent learning or practicing that skill. It may be anything, from disc jockeying, skiing, designing or skating. Do everything you possibly can to improve on what you already know. This brings us to practice. There is no other way of being good at things other than through practice.
9. Seek Further Knowledge on Subjects that Interest You
Go to an art school, attend art shows and visit museums if you aspire to be an artist. There is no better way to further enhance your skills than by increasing your know-how in that area. Know your world and understand what others before you have been able to achieve in the field. Understand how your predecessors tackled various challenges, the mistakes they made and how they learned from them. After that, be unique. Find a new way of doing things. Finally, try to create something a new in order to catch an observers’ eye. Someone might actually need your new emerging passion.
10. Imagine and Visualize
Wayne Rooney, a famous English professional footballer, usually inquires of the color of the kit they were to wear prior to a football match. “I lie in bed the night before the game and visualize myself scoring goals. You’re trying to put yourself in that moment and trying to prepare yourself, to have a memory before the game.” This helps him be in the right mood to perform well and make the right movements on and off the ball during the game.
Try to picture and imagine what you would love doing, say in the next countless number of years. Meditate and imagine something worth spending huge chunks of time on. Every single day, when you wake up in the morning, try to visualize and think of that activity you’ll never get bored of. This will psychologically prepare you as you discover your talent.
If you often feel tired of the same old routine and you know that deep down you are at the wrong place, just compose yourself and forge a clear path out. Find your own way of being brave. The world we live in today is in need of your passion, so go out there and find it.
“Open your eyes, look within you and ask yourself whether you are satisfied with the life you are currently living. Do not bury your dreams, put your vision to reality, wake up and live.” -Bob Marley