Entrepreneurs: Exploring Your Professional Passion

What do you want to be when you grow up? This is a question that has been posed to children all across the country. I remember that I wanted to be a nurse until I took my first health assistance course and realized it was not my true passion. After that, I entered the field of social work and the rest is history. What is a passion? According to Dr. Gary Collins, a professional life coach, it is a powerful underlying emotion that energizes and motivates. Your passion can guide you both personally and professionally, which can lead to a fulfilling life. To begin exploring your passion, consider these three guiding points:

Guiding Point #1: Reflect

You may learn a lot about yourself from reflecting on your childhood interests. Consider the places and activities you most enjoyed. When are you most creative and motivated? What are your values, beliefs, and interests? A question posed by Dr. Collins is, "If you had no limitations in terms of money or time, what would you like to do?" Take a little time to know yourself better as you may learn a lot.

Guiding Point #2: Explore

Now it is time to consider your surroundings and the input of those closest to you. Take a look at your immediate environment: your home, your office, your car. What do these spaces communicate about you, your personality, and your interests? Next, ask those who are closest to you to state their observations of what your passions may include. It may be very interesting to hear if their feedback is consistent with your personal reflections.

Guiding Point #3: Pursue

You have reflected and you have explored, now it is time to determine if you want to pursue your passion. Pursuit consists of commitment to achieve your goal, identifying the necessary steps to move forward, gathering information from appropriate resources for guidance, surrounding yourself with supportive people, and anticipating obstacles so you can have a plan to overcome them.

Certainly, exploring one's passion is a process that may take a considerable amount of time, yet the above steps may get you started on that road.

References:

Collins, G. R. (2001). Helping others turn potential into reality: Christian coaching. Colorado Springs, CO: People Helpers International, Inc.

Williams, P. & Davis, D. C. (2007). Therapist as life coach: Transforming your practice. New York: Norton.