When I learned how to clearly identify and articulate my deepest passions and combine them in contribution to others, I discovered my path in life. Every fiber of my being began to row in the same direction, magnetized, connecting me with the resources to realize my vision.
The Challenge: Defining What REALLY Lights You Up
If you’re like me, you have a ton of interests, activities, and pursuits that get you excited. And you also suffer from shiny-object syndrome, where “new” always grabs your attention. This condition left me stuck for so long (see my Bachelor of General Studies as a reference) until I figured out how to cut through the clutter and find my most authentic passions, the ones that stood head and shoulders above the rest. As Greg McKeown describes in Essentialism, I was making a millimeter of progress in a million directions rather than making miles of progress towards a few goals that were truly vital to me.
My Technique
To get clear on what matters most to me, I had to get out of the What-Can-I-Do mindset – based on past education and experience and perceived limitations – and dig deep to uncover what I most want to do. So I did a stream-of-consciousness journal exercise where I asked myself, “What would I do for the rest of my life if there were no obstacles and if I had all of the time and resources imaginable?” (See the exercise in detail here.)
After the initial monkey brain guesses, the subconscious began to speak up, and what I wrote surprised me. Never in a million years would I have told you that I most wanted to serve others through sharing my mental wellness journey – learning how the mind works, tapping into intuition, the power of self-love, and training the mind. These were personal endeavors to help me out with my anxiety. Who was I to teach anyone else? But as I read through my writing, I had a strong gut feeling this was the path for me, even though I didn’t quite know how it would unfold.
Fear: The Biggest Party Pooper Ever
We’ve all experienced that dopamine rush when we come up with an exciting, new idea. It’s thrilling! We’re lit up! Then, sooner or later, ye old mind brings out those wet blankets of doubt, worry, and fear. After all, that’s its job. New means unknown, and unknown means potential threat, and potential threat creates fear. To keep us alive, the mind greatly prefers what is known, even if we don’t like it. Have you ever stayed too long in a relationship, town, or job you didn’t like? We all have.
Examples of The Mind Keeping Us Stuck Out of Fear
- Imposter Syndrome (”Who am I to take on this job?”)
- Negative Outcome Forecasting (”Well, here are 100 reasons why that won’t work.”)
- Should-ing All Over Ourselves (”I should try and make do with what I have.”)
- What-If Worrying (”What if this doesn’t pan out and my life goes in the crapper?”)
- Comparison Judging (”These people over here are much more qualified than me to do what I want.”)
Don’t get me wrong, reasoned assessment of any new endeavor is necessary and essential. But we need to objectively look at the whole picture, not just rely on our negativity bias.
Serving a Larger Purpose Pushes Us Through
People find that superhuman strength when they serve a cause greater than themselves. Think of responses to natural disasters or terrorist attacks, rescuing someone from a burning building, soldiers in our military, or massive protests. The power to exceed our perceived abilities is a beautiful part of our brain’s hard wiring! It gives us that extra oomph to push past our fear-based minds when we need to. However, we don’t have to wait for a flood or become a firefighter to tap into it.
The trick is to cast your mind wide and determine which solution or solutions you most want to be a part of, especially those which coincide with your truest passions. What sets your soul on fire? Chase that. And get crystal freaking clear. See yourself on those front lines and make a commitment to taking serious action by using your God-given talents to lend a helping hand. The ability to see that electric, larger-than-life picture will keep you going when you run into the inevitable obstacles, setbacks, and lulls in progress.
And if you find your WHY, drop me a line and let me know. I’d love to hear it!
Much love,
Barton
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