Passion Is The Fuel Human Beings Use

Children focus fiercely on everything they do while doing it. Nothing else exists. The world is just them and whatever it is that they are doing at that moment: the game they are playing, the movie they are watching, the toy they are holding... And with that focus comes passion, their inexhaustible source of energy. But then we grow...

As we grow, our attention is divided into a million needs and tasks. We rarely just do one single thing at a time and most of what we do doesn't even require our full attention. We learn to shift our focus from one problem to the next, from one action to the next or back to the previous one. We forget the art of just being totally immersed in only one task, in flow with it, unaware and uncaring about anything else. And as we do, our energy spreads to feed and fuel that myriad of smaller actions we undertake. No wonder why we never feel energetic enough anymore!

Passion is the fuel for human energy. We see it in children but also in those few adults who still maintain their passion for what they do. Have you ever met anybody truly passionate about something who complains of a lack of energy? Just the opposite, right? Those you meet who seem to never tire are profoundly passionate about what they do. Without passion, energy dwindles and it does so because passion requires focus so the three go together and feed one another: passion, focus, energy.

Many people come to me because they feel exhausted and without energy or because they can't perform at the level they see me or others performing. 'What's your secret?' they ask me. 'How can you have so much energy?' The answer is my passion. I passionately love what I do: I passionately love writing and speaking, interacting with other human beings, getting to know them... I passionately love being alive. When those people come to me, they never have a passion of their own and without it, there is no focus.

Think about it for a moment. Look back onto your childhood or just observe children at play. When playing, nothing else exists; just the game. Do you remember that feeling of utter concentration and devotion? That is what you're missing. You go to work but are you fully there? I bet you aren't. Or you only are for short bouts of time. That's why those who professionally devote themselves to their passion never look tired. Unfortunately, most human beings just have a job, not a passion. Most people just do their jobs or pursue their career not because it's a passion for them but for many other reasons. They might choose certain studies based on the greater probabilities to find a job later on, or the amount of money they will bring them, or who knows what. And that is OK, as long as they also realize that days will feel long and boring and will always be accompanied by that perennial feeling of exhaustion.

I feel like this is a rule of life: passion transforms into energy; a lack of passion results in a lack of energy. As simple as that. If you want to feel more energetic in life, you're going to have to change the way you live to find more passion or to create more opportunities to feel passionate about something.

Let me offer you some tips on how to turn a job into something you might feel passionate for. (You can also quit your current job and follow your passion, if you have one, of course, but this next section is for those who already have a job, no specific passion and can't just shift careers at present.) So, if you are a manager in a company, for example, and feel like working days completely drain you of your energy,

1. ask yourself what in your job sparks your passion... Nothing? Very little? Why doesn't it surprise me? Let's try and create or ignite some passion in you, then.
2. go over the list of tasks you perform on a regular week and try and find something in them that you could eventually feel passionate about; human interaction, reaching excellence, being the best at one aspect of your work, creativity, productivity... or maybe even reaching the next wrung in the ladder... whatever. Once you find it, start devoting your full attention to that goal on incremental steps: first 10 minutes a day, then 15, then 20, and so on. Those minutes need to be like children at play, absolutely focused and devoted. If distracted, go back to the task and focus on the positives it brings you. Think about what it is you enjoy about them, how they make you feel, what is is that interests you when performing them. Focus on them at the moment, not on what they might bring in the future.
3. while performing other tasks that are not the ones you identified as possible sources of passion, try to focus your full attention on each of them while carrying them out; a bit like mindful working. When changing tasks, shift your full attention to the new task at hand.
4. If you can't seem to be able to fully focus on something, ask yourself what part of that specific task is distracting you, or which other task is so important that it keeps calling your attention onto it. Focus on that one aspect or task, get it out of the way, so to speak, and go back to focusing on one task at a time.
5. Once you feel a spark of passion for any of the tasks you perform, no matter how big or small, look for similar tasks in your job or possible new developments related to that one task that could open new avenues or result in more opportunities to do what you just discovered you love doing. If necessary, talk to your superiors and let them know about your passion. Managers know that passionate employees always yield better results, so chances are they might give you a few more shots at advancing along those lines.
6. if nothing you do at work sparks your passion at all, apply all 5 points above to your personal life... what do you do outside of work that sparks your passion? And focus on those instead, to build a life of meaning and energy for yourself.

So, do you have any passions in your life? What gets you excited or moving? Use that! Because a life without passion is like a movie in slow motion; nice and fun to watch for a short while but quite boring after a while.

Enjoy life... ALL of it,

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Why It's Never Too Late To Rediscover Your Joy And Fall In Love With Being Alive

We All Have Choices, Irrespective Of Our Conditions

I want to ask you a question so simple you may not have asked it before: Are you happy being alive? Do you feel a sense of joy when you wake up each morning? Do you look forward to the day or is your outlook filled with dread, worry or anxiety? Ponder this over the coming paragraphs as I try to convince you why it's never too late to rediscover your joy and fall in love with being alive.

There's a great deal that takes place beyond our conscious mind which we're unaware of. For this reason, it is important we make time for self-enquiry to see what is going on beneath the surface. I liken it to a pot that simmers before it comes to a boil. By then the temperature has increased, which reflects what takes place in our own lives. If a situation is not given our attention, it will simmer beneath the surface and reach a boiling point. It may be difficult to find our way back to peace and harmony because of the disruption to our lives. Some people believe life is difficult and don't experience joy and happiness, even if it landed in their lap. This is because they are mired in their misery which becomes their default setting and they view any change as unfamiliar.

We all have choices, irrespective of our conditions, our past and present circumstances. We can choose joy and fall in love with being alive because it is one of the most precious gifts we are given. Something happens to a person at a certain point in their life. They come to appreciate the value of life which can be taken away from us in any moment. When we are young, we have the world ahead of us and don't think far into the future. But the future arrives quicker than we realise and soon enough we are middle-aged and time has passed us by. Reflect on your own life, how has the past affected who you are now? Have you experienced challenging moments or turning points that shaped the way you are today?

Remember. Release. Renew

Whilst it's said the past needn't determine where we're headed, we create a prosperous future by referencing the past through a new landscape. We don't need to drag the past along with us like a worn-out ornament, but see it through the eyes of compassion and forgiveness. We ought to take what is valuable from the past to alter our experience of the future. You are not defined by your past any more than what happened to you yesterday. The past has taken place but from this present moment, it is a figment of our imagination. We cannot touch, see, nor experience it but only replay it in our minds. It was the Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren Daishonin who once said: "If you want to understand the causes that existed in the past, look at the results as they are manifested in the present. And if you want to understand what results will be manifested in the future, look at the causes that exist in the present." It is why forgiveness, kindness and compassion are essential when rewriting a new karmic script for the future.

It is possible to experience exuberant joy and fall in love with being alive, irrespective of what has occurred in our life. The obstacles and challenges we experienced are not the impediments but are in fact the way. Our pain, hurt and misery are the keys to heal what is buried deep within us. As the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Winston Churchill once declared: "If you are going through hell, keep going." The way out through pain and heartache is not to run away from it or stow it deep within our mind since that makes it come back stronger. To overcome the wounds of the past requires us to experience them now in the present moment through the eyes of forgiveness and compassion. These higher vibrational states which are bestowed in love are the soul's eyes looking at itself through a canvas of love and equanimity.

To rediscover joy and fall in love with being alive requires we let go of hurt and disappointments while refusing to drag along excess baggage not relevant to our future. I often mention to coaching clients and audience members a three-word mantra to describe this process: Remember. Release. Renew. So we remember the past, however instead of witnessing it through the eyes of pain and suffering, we rewrite a new script through the eyes of forgiveness and compassion. To release means to let go of disempowering thoughts or emotions associated with the past since we cannot create a new future with these negative states following us. Renew invites us to appreciate the lessons imbued in those experiences, so we can see them through a new lens. If we wish to rediscover joy and fall in love with being alive, we must let go of that which impedes upon this way of life. Only then will we discover the fountain of joy that has been living within us all this time.

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The 6 Habits That Lead To Happiness

So often we count what is missing from our lives, focusing on what is not there.

In doing this, we create a form of "negative hallucination," a state of mind that blinds us to so much of what is actually there -- a really self-defeating way to pass our days.

By dwelling on what we lack we create feelings of deprivation and unhappiness that can eclipse the spirit and block our ability to experience the simple joy of being alive.

If we really do want to live a more fulfilled and joyful life then cultivating a sense of gratitude is a key ingredient. Gratitude for all that we have, for all that is there, brings with it a deeper appreciation of life itself.

Research has shown (1) that gratitude is an essential element in our ability to experience genuine happiness.

Change Your Mind

Not only that, but expressing gratitude can help change your mind in a positive way, and actually have a physical effect on the brain, changing it in positive ways.

Gratefulness and life satisfaction just seem to go hand in hand (2).

Here are six habits that grateful people cultivate. They are the keys to increased joy and contentment.

1. Grateful people do not expect life to give them every single thing they desire. They live with the understanding that no one can have everything they want, when they want it, and that this is okay. They are appreciative of all they have, and are less likely to envy what others have.

2. Grateful people take nothing for granted. They do their best to see the positive outcome in situations and experiences and are not afraid to work towards those outcomes. They do not take the good things in their lives for granted.

3. Grateful people work with things as they are. They do not insist that conditions be exactly right before they can be happy. Appreciative of all they have, they accept life's shortcomings, while working on their own, and welcome joy and happiness into their lives unconditionally.

4. Grateful people realize that they cannot have the sunshine without also having the rain. They understand that no one can live in a perpetual state of happiness, accepting that difficult times will sometimes come. They have learned to respect and be grateful for life in all its diversity.

5. Grateful people cultivate flexible thinking habits. They have learned to adapt to life circumstances and can adjust their thinking to the situation. Gratitude and rigid thinking make a poor fit, and so they make allowances for other people's perceptions and opinions.

6. Grateful people do not define themselves by their regrets. They appreciate their abilities while working to improve them, accepting responsibility for their actions while working towards their positive future. Cultivate these habits of gratitude and you really will reap some wonderful benefits.

What are you waiting for? Why not start right now!

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