Are You Pursuing Your Passion?

"Passion is Universal Humanity. Without it religion, history, romance and art would be useless" Honore De Balzac,French Novelist

All week I've been hearing the word passion everywhere. While at work co-workers were discussing passion for their work, on television people were talking about their passion for food, clothes, music etc. You name it and people professed passion for it. This theme resonated with me and led me to think about what my true passion in life is and how to pursue my passion everyday. In my opinion most people are not living passionate lives. Most of us are just trying to get by; most of us (me included) are just going to work to pay the bills because this is what many of us were conditioned to do. Many of us were conditioned to go to school, get married, have children, buy a house and try to be good before we die and hopefully along the way we can live a fairly comfortable lifestyle and save enough for retirement so that hopefully we can accomplish all of the things that we really wanted to accomplish before our demise. I have been thinking to myself lately that this is such a pitiful way to live, but unfortunately it is the American way.

Wouldn't it be great if we could travel and explore before choosing a career path. Wouldn't it be great if all children had a chance to explore their natural gifts so that at an early age instead of being lumped into a system that requires the same standards for every child, it would allow children to become creative thinkers. In other countries high school graduates are allowed to travel abroad and work their way through other countries to get exposure to other cultures and learn different ways of thinking. This is a valubale experience because it allows these young adults to discover their likes and dislikes and discover new perspectives on life and differences in the way they were raised.This creates room for dialouge and understanding of cultures different from their own.This also creates a deeper appreciation of their own culture, and it teaches respect of others that might not have the same perspective. This exploration allows them to establish global relationships that might not have otherwise existed due to stereotypes or ignorance of different belief systems. While some people know from childhood what they are born to do many of us have no real idea of our own potential because of the pressure that society has put on us to conform. We are forced to choose a path, or a career before we are even aware of the vastness and diversity of the world around us. Some adults remain closed minded and never leave their own city, much less country. These people have the false illusion that they are living their passion because their job has afforded them a comfortable lifestyle. How can we create change or make a difference without passion? There are many people who have discovered their passion and are making a difference in the lives of so many and I hope to be one of those people. I am a firm believer that you don't have to have one passion, but being able to identify at least one thing that you are passionate about is a start. I am learning that in whatever you do in life there must be passion to truly be fulfilled and have true success. Success should not only be measured by material gain, but wealth may definitely materialize when a true passion is being pursued. Passion drives people to keep moving when it seems like there is nowhere to go and your back is against a wall.Once you find your passion it's like a drug and it's hard to stop getting high. Passion is the flame that keeps the fire of innovation lit. A passionate person sees the possibilites and dismisses negativity. Passion can not be bought nor sold. Passion has built and conqured nations. So how do we find our passion?

I have challenged myself to look deeper into what my passions are and pursue them with fervent effort. What are you passionate about, and how are you going to change the world today?

To discover your passion please ask yourself these questions, and then get to work!

1. What would you do even if you didn't need the money?
2. Could you continue your passion into the late hours of the night even if you had to go the your regular job in the morning?
3. Would you be willing to live, breathe, eat and sleep your passion?

I challenge you to discover that which you are truely passionate about, and then pursue it with fervent effort.

~One Love