Some days seem like they are just designed to make you think. A couple weeks ago we were blessed with one of those when our son married the girl of his dreams, giving us of course the daughter-in-law of our dreams! It was a grand day remembering the past, reveling in the present, and dreaming of the future. Often we attribute trying times with putting things in focus and reminding us of what is really important, but high times are great for that as well. Personally, I was reminded of how important and wonderful it is to live life with joy and gratitude, to make good memories each and every day.
A couple days later I was “blessed” with another thinking opportunity when I woke up with a stabbing pain in my back, shoulder, and arm that continued to get worse over the next day or so until I became basically bed ridden; most likely related to using my body as a human crane the day before! Now two weeks later, I’m still having to be extremely careful with how I move and what I do. My 55 year old body is just not as resilient as it used to be! This time I’m reminded that my daily routine of ranch work is not enough to keep my body tuned and prepared for the occasional unexpected strains my more youthful mind tends to throw at it. In other words, it’s way past time for me to get serious about a more consistent and focused exercise routine. And some of you are in the same boat; you know who you are. Take it from someone who knows, don’t wait!
Speaking of things to think about and do before it’s too late, I recently finished a book by a young budding entrepreneur titled Do Cool Sh*t: Quit Your Day Job, Start Your Own Business, and Live Happily Ever After
So far she’s been a world class soccer player, opened a pizza shop (now a franchised into a chain) that specializes in healthy locally sourced ingredients – ingredients that even gluten and lactose intolerant people can eat, and designed a line of beautiful, absorbent, stain and leak resistant, anti-microbial, feminine underwear. And for each pair sold she donates seven washable and reusable pads to a third world girl so she no longer has to use rags, leaves, or plastic bags.
Obviously Miki gets it, gets the premise we are promoting at SocialEntrepreneurshipIdeas.com that philanthropy and community service can and in fact should be the core reason that a business exits, that giving back should be something a business does from the very beginning, when it is most likely hard to do, rather than waiting until after it achieves some preconceived level of success and can give from its unneeded excess.
Miki also gets that life without passion, a passion born from knowing your purpose (See Know Your Purpose), is only half a life. Sadly, too many of us spend our whole lives being responsible and doing the “right thing”, but never really discover how to do that and be joyfully passionate at the same time. Now don’t get me wrong, responsibility and accountability are certainly noble values, essential keys to meaning and success. But as important as they are, they are only half the picture. Without passion, duty becomes a joyless drudgery with the only bright spots being weekends and holidays, and retirement can’t come soon enough!
Real genuine passion though is born when you discover how to use your own unique sense of wonder and creativity to enrich the lives of others; in other words, when you discover why you are here – your own personal special purpose. Then every day is a welcome adventure and retirement… well, who wants it!
Entrepreneur Alicia Glenn describes 5 simple ways to discover what your passion is.
- Don’t always look at the hard skills – in contrast to learned “skills”, your innate “talents” will be a much better guide to your inner passion.
- It’s all about trial and error – sometimes you just don’t know until you try, and misses can be just as informative as hits.
- Retrace your steps. What did you like to do as a child? More often than not, our “education” has buried the passion we felt as children.
- Pay attention to opportunities around you. See what looks interesting and give it a shot.
- Follow your gut instincts. Although you may need to try a few things out before you hit a bull’s-eye, if it doesn’t “light your fire” now, there’s little chance that it will later.
To this list I would add one more essential consideration.
- Find a way to “give without expectations”. There’s a reason that’s the name of this newsletter. Selfless giving is the lubricant that makes everything else possible.
So if you haven’t already, let this be your “thinking opportunity” – start figuring out what your passion is and how to build every day around it. That doesn’t mean you’ll “never work a day in your life”, but it does mean that the work you do every day will be full of meaning, work that you are glad to do!
Now go be all you can be!
Vaya con dios,
Lon
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