I am sure, that at some time in your life you have been told (or heard the statement) that you should do what you love. That you should seek out your passion in life and engage deeply in it. And if you can find this situation, then more power to you. My experience tells me that it is rare, but not impossible, to do so. And since it is not a lock by any means that you can Do What you Love, then I caution you that making it a destination in one’s life could be frustrating and unfulfilling. Rather I offer an idea that offers a much more certain and satisfying way to pursue life (and THPL) – and that is for you to make an active decision to Love What You Do. I know from years of experience that it is an earnest destination and one that needs strong consideration. I would say that after many, many years of participating in a wide range of pursuits, personal and professionally, that I am a full-fledged expert in this approach (the Love What You Do version). The key lesson for me is that this path is a much more certain and satisfying experience and one that you can live by every day of THPL you have chosen to live.
So where do you start – well, the focus, as is with THPL, is to start by building the elements, skills and approach that apply to all of your pursuits (loving them or not). The first step in Loving What You Do is to fall in love with your new pursuit - you can start by working hard and diligently and doing it a lot – the sheer volume of work will start to create the foundation for Loving What You Do. Next is to focus on improving your skills, expertise and knowledge of your new endeavor. Once this pillar is set you then focus on the day to day specifics of the job and what it requires of you. You then must become part of the community of your new “love”. Join social groups, read blogs, engage with others, and collaborate with like-minded people. Once you have this thread going you will start to see the satisfaction and fulfillment of small victories and they will serve as the motivation to keep working harder.
Little by little you will find that the commitment, the feedback and the community fuels a passion for the work – and you can then take it to the next level. You start to become a fanatic on the core of the work – the topics that you discuss, the research you do, the collaboration you foster – all are focused on doing better and better with your new found love. Before long you realize that not only do you love what you do, others around you are captivated by your passion and dedication and they start to do the same thing. The infectious nature of this passion and love is sought out, copied and passed on. Stay the course and remarkable things will happen.
So what is better than loving what you do? Sally pushups late at night 3:26 +20 seconds, add in a few, 228, other pushups on the 4:17 song and the day is just about complete.
Loving life because that is what I do.
Ciao
Joe