7 Tips for Finding your Passion

Not everyone gets lucky and stumbles on their passion. It can take work and you may even find that you don’t have just one passion. Finding your passion in life is important for everyone as it gives us a sense of purpose and fulfillment. Without that, reaching self-actualization is impossible. But, what if you’re lost? What if your passion isn’t yet clear to you?

It’s important to note that no matter where you are in life, or your age, there is no “due date” for finding your passion. We all need to live life on our own terms and stop falling victim to expectations. There is no “ideal timeline” in life, regardless of what’s portrayed. We are all individuals, unique in attaining our own happiness.

If you have yet to find your passion and simply don’t know what to do next, here are 7 tips to help you find your passion – or passions – in life:

1. Forget about what everyone else thinks

We all spend a lot of time worrying about what other people think and you know what? It doesn’t help anything.

When I first told people I wanted to pursue writing professionally, I got a lot of eye rolls and teeth clenches. At first, I guess I took it pretty hard considering I found what I knew, beyond any doubt, what I wanted to spend my life doing. Eventually I realized that what people think didn’t matter, even people who were close to me.

The truth is: Other people aren’t living your life – YOU are. So, essentially what they think doesn’t matter one damn bit. If somebody keeps trying to push you down a path that you’re unsure of – stop listening to them. Stop listening to everyone. Listen to yourself and find a way to mute outside opinions. It all comes down to YOU.

2. Make Lists (Lots & lots of lists)

Making lists is a great way to “brain dump.” Not only that, it’s an efficient way to organize your thoughts in a way that is easy to reflect upon. Break down what’s important to you, what is entertaining to you and what you know you love. Here are some examples of lists to make to help you reflect:

• Most Important Social Issues
• Priorities in my life
• Things I Love
• Things I Loathe
• Careers I may Enjoy
• Things that Make me Happy
• Concerns I have in day-to-day Life
• Where I could see Myself in 5 Years
• Bucket List
• List of Greatest Strengths
• List of Weaknesses
• List of what Scares Me
• List of what Excites Me

By making lists, you can narrow down what is most important to you versus what isn’t. It may sound rather rudimentary, but it’s a great way to really get a clear view of what YOU want in life. Also, to break down issues and concerns further, using the good old “Pros & Cons” list is an excellent idea.

3. Indulge in ALL your Interests & Explore possible Interests

I have met so many people who lack hobbies or rarely pursue more than one or two interests. Don’t limit yourself. Try everything. You think you may enjoy something, but aren’t sure? Try it! You only get to live once and in the end, it’s far worse to regret what you didn’t do or try than what you did.

Indulge in your interests, even the ones with a big fat “maybe” beside them. Limiting yourself is not going to bring your passion or happiness. It’s going to hold you back.

4. Think about those you Admire

Who do you admire? What is it about them that makes them admirable to you? Answering these questions can help point you towards your passion. Think about what qualities you admire and how they correlate with the way you’re currently living your life.

I’m not saying make yourself a mirror-image of a person or persons you admire, but rather to build on what you admire about them. Strive to follow your own morals and interests and use those whom you admire as a sort of “canvas” to apply to yourself. If you admire those who are honest – try to set your personal standards to towards that virtue.

Admiration can be a great way to take notice of what ideals and lifestyles are important to you, thus, (at the very least), pointing you towards the ballpark of what your passion or passions may be.

5. Identify your Main Goals

What is that you want out of life? Happiness, of course, should be a main priority, but we all want to live certain lifestyles also. Write down all the goals you would like to accomplish. You may find your passion is hiding within in that very list.

Our goals do not solely define us, but they can give you a good idea of what actionable steps you need to take to reach those goals.

Categorize your goals like this: primary goals, secondary goals & “others.”

The goals that are most important to you will fall under primary and the other still important, but less than primary goals will fall into secondary. “Others” should simply be goals that you may or may not truly want to achieve, so the “other” category should be goals that you don’t mind having on the back burner.

6. Other Questions to Ask Yourself

This is just going to be a list of other questions you should ask yourself. Write them down. Your passion will likely be right there in front of you as one of the answers. Truly answer.

• What would you want to do if money wasn’t a concern?
• If you knew without any doubt that you could be successful at anything – what would you pursue?
• What were some of your dreams as a child?
• When you do certain activities, define your “why?”
• What do you believe in?
• What problems do you want to solve?
• What things are you most grateful for?

7. Reflect

After evaluating all the questions, making lists and focusing on yourself – reflect on all of the information you’ve gathered. What is it telling you? Odds are, it’s all pointing directly at YOUR PASSION or passions.

Realize what you’re happiest doing and what makes the most sense to you, given what you know about yourself. You are on the edge of discovering your passion & leading a very fulfilling life. (Which doesn’t mean there won’t be bumpy patches – we all have them).

Narrow down what you think this information is pointing to and give it a go. Hell, give a few things a go. When you’re in your passion, you will know. 🙂

Final Thoughts:

Finding your passion is a truly amazing thing. Everyone finds theirs at their own pace, so don’t get discouraged if it’s taking you a bit longer. Remember that some people sadly never find their passion.

Try new things. Experiment. Talk to others. Get to deeply know yourself and everything you’re about. And sometimes, your passion can find you when you’re least expecting it.

I wish you all the very best of luck in finding your passion, (or passions). Please share to help others find theirs. Let me know in the comments if this was helpful 🙂

Much Love <3