I remember the first time I read Alice’s Adventures in
Wonderland and came across the passage where Alice and the Cheshire Cat were
discussing the course she will follow. Alice comments that she doesn’t really
care where she goes, as long as she gets somewhere.
I thought how odd it would be for people to go through life like
Alice went through her fantasy world, never knowing where they might end up. But
I later realized many of us do just that. We take things as they come, often making
decisions based primarily on momentary concerns with little regard for present
meaning or future impact. We end up somewhere, but probably not where we would
be if we were given a choice.
You do have a choice. Your first choice is to live with
passion and follow your heart. Only by letting passion into your life will you
achieve your potential and find fulfillment. You also must decide what passion
means to you and where you want it to lead you. And, you must have a purpose in
pursuing it. You may have discovered your passion, but you can’t follow
it because you don’t take the time to clarify what role it should play in
your life. Passion without purpose is meaningless. Your passion must be regulated
wisely and carefully channeled. Your purpose is the conduit through which you
harness your passion and positively use it. By establishing a purpose for your
passion, you determine how, when, and where you will use it.
Deciding how you want to use your passion is an uplifting choice.
It’s like finding a treasure and deciding how you and the world will benefit
from it. Will it make you rich, or will you spread your new wealth to others?
Will you use it to increase your knowledge, improve your community, or help others?
Will it simplify your life or complicate it? Will it move you away from your current
setting or tie you closer to it?
Two Considerations
Look at your life and consider: “What is my purpose? What do
I foresee my greatest possible accomplishments in life as being?” Or, “Given
my life as it is now, how can my passion help me achieve this greater purpose?
What other purposes will it serve?”
1. Big Purpose. Your life mission—your Big Purpose —is
your reason for being and your justification for living. Your Big Purpose, like
your passion, stems from your heart. The two are closely linked. They work in
tandem. You may be so intimately connected to your passion that it defines your
Big Purpose. Most people, however, are pulled in conflicting directions by circumstance
and the influence of others, self-doubt, and other forces. Your passion is the
most powerful tool you possess in fulfilling your Big Purpose. Those who successfully
integrate passion into their lives—passioneers—understand this relationship
and usually bridge the gap between passion and purpose. Your purpose emanates
from your heart, just as passion does. When your life is out of sync with your
passion, the purpose that accompanies it is irrelevant. You must have a sense
of where you are now, what you hope to accomplish, what you are willing to sacrifice,
and what you hope to gain. Only when you feel comfortable with this can you begin
to work passion into your life and benefit from it.
2. Key profit areas. Before you incorporate passion into your life,
consider also the smaller, equally important purposes you hope to fulfill in various
aspects of your life. Implicit in any vision of your future must be a regard for
your emotional, physical, and spiritual state; the nature of your relationships
with others at home, work, and in social settings; your intellectual growth; your
financial condition; and your role as a member of society. These are key profit
areas. Profit is any result you are seeking in building a better life. There may
be one thing you value or want most, but you likely hope to achieve many things:
good health, strong relationships, financial security, or the respect of colleagues.
Your expectations in each key profit area are critical to building a successful,
passion-filled life. The choices that you make must reinforce rather than compromise
your objectives. If you succeed in one area at the expense of another, you have
not gained much.
Aligning Passion and Purpose
How do you see your passion factoring into your life? How can it
help you achieve what you want? Will it be relevant to your professional life?
Could it help you in your relationships with your friends and family? Will it
affect your spiritual well-being? Could you use it to earn a living? Could it
help you feel better about yourself?
As you ask these questions, look for possibilities rather than limitations.
Think creatively. Look for ways in which your passion could come into play. If,
for example, you have a passion for cooking, consider new ways to use that passion.
You might volunteer in the community, involve your children in preparing meals
together or baking gifts for friends and neighbors, fulfill your entrepreneurial
dream by opening a restaurant, starting a catering business, or publishing a cookbook.
For each passion you name, list all the purposes you believe it might
serve. Then think about which of them you are prepared to accept and pursue. What
role in your life do you think you are prepared to give this passion? Are you
ready to work it into your career? Can you see yourself pursuing it full-time,
part-time, or only on occasion? Are you willing to make sacrifices to pursue it?
Will it require you to make dramatic changes or can you follow it without altering
your current situation?
By answering these questions, you gain a sense of the task that lies
before you. The purpose you define will determine the direction your passion will
take. This direction can change as your purpose and priorities change, but it
provides a starting point. PE
