When you were younger you were probably passionate about a hundred things.
Maybe you loved a film so much that you had to watch it every single day. Maybe you loved dancing so much that you memorized your favorite dance video and tried to imitate the artist’s every move. Or maybe you were fascinated with animals and sure that you were going to become a veterinarian.
Whatever the case, there are very few kids or teenagers in the world who feel “meh” about anything. As a kid, you either love it or hate it. I can ask my daughter about liking something and she will give me “love it” or “hate it”, without fail. That’s what it means to be passionate.
These days, the reality is quite different for most of us. If you are like most people, then you will probably find yourself doing things half-hearted and not getting all excited about much of anything…
So how do you not be like most people (in my world they call that average) and reconnect to those old passions you once had?
Here are a couple of tips that can get you thinking…
Remember Your Old Goals
Reflect on your past. What are some of the old goals you had? When you were younger, maybe you wanted to be an astronaut or a princess or both and its only as we get older that we are told to find something more ‘adult’ to be interested in.
But just because we’ve been forced to bury those old interests, that doesn’t mean they aren’t there still bubbling under the surface
And just because you might not realistically become an astronaut (this isn’t one of those articles), that doesn’t mean you still can’t chase a passion for space or for travel… or whatever it was that originally drove you to feel so strongly.
Think about why you lost touch those things with and why and then try to get back under the skin of those things to remember what it was that lit your fire about them.
I had a client who, when younger, had a passion for the arts. As she got older and then became a mother there was a part of her that thought the ‘moment’ had passed her by.
I shared with her to go back and visit doing something in the arts that she found pleasure in. To take a step in the direction and sign up for a class. She did it and it revived her passion for the creative.
That brings me to the next thing I suggest you do.
Add a New Spin
Create a new future. Sometimes you will find that you have lost interest in the things that once were so amazing to you and if that’s the case then you shouldn’t feel bad. There is nothing wrong with finding new things to be passionate about. Just as easily though, you could also try adding a new spin to an old passion.
For instance, if you used to love cartoons, maybe you could enjoy a comic book? Or maybe you once enjoyed creating art? Maybe you could now teach others how to do a simple painting and find their own joy?
The point is, rediscovering old passions is about respect for the past but its also about growth and development and not forcing a square peg into an old, round hole.
Excellence By Design Academy 