The truth about Passion
Being passionate about something does not equal to you really being passionate about something. In fact, you might be lying to yourself.
We confuse being passionate about something to having the energy to do something…
Passion is a strong word.
Passion is a very subjective word.
Passion drives you forward.
Passion kills you instantly.
Let me share some of my real-life situations with you.
I love dogs. I super love dogs. In fact, I have worked with dogs and worked for dogs. I’ve worked with dogs as a police officer (national service) and I have worked for dogs as a veterinarian administrator. I am very passionate about dogs. However, I did not carry the energy to do so. Being a police officer clearly meant that you have to uphold the law — not something I was passionate about. Being a veterinarian administrator meant that you have to schedule appoints and answer calls — not something I was passionate about.
You see…
Being passionate about something without the energy to do so = ZERO.
Let’s talk about something more recent and long-termed.
I love music.
I am super passionate about music.
I became a music teacher and a performer full-time for about 13 years.
I stopped.
I quit.
I love to express my thoughts and feelings through music. I love to relate my experiences through music. I love to bring smiles on people’s faces through my music. I love to just… play music. But when money and reality came into the picture, I have to “passionately” adjust and adapt.
Being a performer is a dream. I get to share my love for music and I get to put smiles on people’s faces.
But, you have to do song covers of famous top 40 bands and entertaining the drunks in order to make a living is a must — forcing yourself to play what the customers want, whether you like it or not.
On the other hand, being a music teacher is so satisfying — you get to teach and watch your students grow musically.
But, you have to teach the unteachable and you have to force teach the ones who are not interested — you have to teach that dude who runs around the class just because his parents paid the school fees.
If you do not have the energy to fuel your passion, you will lose it…
Completely.
Only after switching my career to become a photographer, I understood why.
The start of my photography journey sucked. I was busy taking pictures of everything and putting in hours to practice my edits and watching famous photographers work their magic. I became frustrated because I can’t perform well in this line of work — according to me. It was only until early last year that I finally understood my “passion.”
Photography wasn’t my thing.
Heck. I am not the sort of guy who packs a camera wherever he goes to and I hate to take pictures with my phone. In fact, my camera is always left on the table, collecting dust.
I began to wonder why.
I am passionate about music.
I am passionate about teaching.
I am passionate about creating good visuals.
Huh? But why don’t I put in the hours or consistently do it?
Because they are just mediums.
Mediums to help me release the real cause — the real passion.
I love to share and help my clients build up their brands or document their special events — to bring smiles on their faces.
Here’s what I did to consistently be energised, no matter what.
I look at the bigger picture. In order to take good photographs and understand visual branding, I worked backwards. I found out what I needed to better myself as a photographer/content creator and I worked towards that. My passion aligned with my energy and I became unstoppable. I found out that I could use my love for music to align with moving pictures, I became a videographer. I found out that I could gift my love for dogs to their owners hence, I provided photography and videography services.
There you go.
I aligned my passion projects towards the bigger picture and I earned the power of limitless energy.
Sometimes, we assumed that having the passion to do something requires you to put in hours of practices or forcible actions. But, you will get really-really-really disappointed when reality strikes — money, shelter and relationships.
The ultimate experience is to do what you love to do and make a living out of it — which requires energy to do so.
If you are just living a life based on your passion without having the bigger picture or plans, you will get really tired and eventually… quit.
As a music teacher, I always tell my students to work backwards. Tell me who you want to be like and we shall work backwards. This way, you can see the progress and take the shorter path instead of learning page by page, black and white.
Lastly, I want to share with you a story.
Everyone knows who Eminem is. In one of his interviews, he talked about something along the lines of getting his family problems out of the way so that he could focus on his passion for music. If you listen to some of his songs, you will notice that most of his compositions are outlets to fuel his passion for music. There are meanings behind his songs and most of them are based on the family trauma he experienced — music gave him a voice. Try comparing his songs with other rappers and you will understand why.
As time goes by in general, you can feel the passion in people dying without the energy department in play. But Eminem’s legacy goes on. He has the energy and reason to fuel his passion.
Thanks for reading!!!
* All photographs displayed in this blog are taken by me*
