Infuse Passion into Your Life

I saved this 6th of 6 Leadership Lesson Cornerstone Moments for the topic of Passion because it helps fuel all the other leadership skills and qualities needed to be successful. Passion is important in business and life because, among other things, it helps us overcome our deficiencies–and we all have them!

So what is passion? One definition of passion is– “any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, such as love or hate,”. Another is “a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for anything,”, such as “a passion for music,” or “a passion for providing healthcare,”. If you want to do something badly enough, you will do so because of the drive of passion from within you.

Why is having passion important? I believe for several reasons. Besides helping overcome deficiencies, passion pulls us up; pulls us out, and positions us well. What do I mean by that? It enables us to overcome adversity; it gives us initiative, and it gives us the greatest odds for success. When our backs are against the wall, passion provides us inspiration to take a risk and to try unfamiliar things and to dare to be different to win. When seeking a positive outcome, passion provides the confidence that gives us that little extra that we need to more likely accomplish our objectives.

Passion can also turn the ordinary into extraordinary because it fires creativity. When passionate about something your imagination will expand, and the innovative ideas flow. That is when ordinary thoughts and plans become extraordinary and the mundane becomes interesting. Passion is the first step to success because it inspires you to act.

Now that the case for having passion (not that it needs a case built) is well established, how does it come about? Sometimes it may happen magically. I haven’t experienced that so can’t elaborate, but if you have, I would love to hear your story! So instead, I will give you some ideas or make some suggestions that could help jumpstart your passion. I will begin by asking you a question. Have you ever had something in your life that was always with you and wouldn’t go away? My example of that is this–I want to teach people what I have learned about leadership and sales and life. I can teach about everything except an Ivy League degree (though I had some work for me), and a “silver spoon”. I have a bunch of others, like poverty, a poor early education, many terrible choices, awful experiences and so on that were part of my learning.

Through many of those years, beginning in my single-digits, I had a sense that I wanted to be a leader. Not knowing what that meant made it more difficult and required many more mistakes than I wanted to make to move me in that direction. I was insecure (i.e. almost always afraid) but learned to face my fears and get out of my comfort zone and into the game. It just wouldn’t go away. So, find something that you can’t escape thinking about as a starting point. Believing that you are intended to do something about that idea is critical because, without action, nothing happens! If you have allowed the idea to stay with you for a period to know if it is real, then you are on your way.

Next, you must be an enthusiastic learner on the topic. At least 5 days a week I absorb something on leadership. Initially, I had to work at it. Today, it is as natural as eating and sleeping. While learning about it, try it out a few times to see if it is really in you to do it. I started doing talks at conferences and conducting leadership training sessions for my team, for clients, and for friends. Guess what happened? Yep! I fell in love with it. I have made leadership training the object of my passion. Do the same with what in your life that won’t go away and make it the centerpiece of your vision. Then build that passion into your values and mission. It will someday become who you are and not just what you do. I say “someday” because it will take work to get to that point where your passion is unfailing. But I will tell you this–it will be worth it. I recently heard John Maxwell say, “I didn’t get to what I do without first doing what I did”. The essence of that is that it takes work!

The next thing to do is put together your PLAN TO WIN and get started. Develop the attitude and realize that it will take courage in the face of fear of failure to win and understand that everything worthwhile is “uphill”. But have faith and execute your plan. Be happy with small wins, an inch at a time if needed. Be receptive to change and commit to the long haul! If you do that, it will come… like a field of dreams.

After you have a passion, what next? Begin by doing something immediately. Act! Get the ball rolling in the direction that you want to go. Tie your action to your vision. Look forward to what is before you and leave behind what is in your past. Don’t put up with your past–both the negatives and the positives. Either or both could hold you back from surging forward. I often refer to that as “burning the ships”.

Accept change because it is part of the cycle of life. Leadership expert Jim Rohn once said – “Your life does not get better by chance; it gets better by change”. Since your life is not a roulette wheel where it is all about the luck of the spin, chance has little to do with your life being successful. If you improve or your life gets better, it is because of the changes you’ve made, short of an occasional miracle.

Whenever a change occurs, it may not end up the way it began, or at least the way your plan or vision began. That is why plans need to be living and not static documents. You may have to recalibrate, readjust, or course-correct your plan along the way. Having that flexibility, and expecting that change, makes the adjustment easier. Holding on tightly to your vision is one thing, but holding on too tightly to a plan could lead you along the wrong path.

If you have read my book “Inspired Selling” or several of my blogs, you know that I am a major fan of having a mentor or several. Go about that with the passion to grow, learn, and find success. Mentors love to help, and there are many excellent ones. Just look around and find someone who you believe in and who you believe could help you improve. Then ask their permission, spend time with them, and learn. Even if you must pay a coach, it will be worth it. One of my best friends and someone who knows me better than anyone was a paid coach of mine for many years.

From here, launch your efforts by developing your Vision, Mission, and Value statements. Make them part of your plan and then execute that plan. Remember, the inspiration you receive from your passion, a plan, and then the execution of your plan will produce results, but without execution, there will be no results.

Finally, become contagious! Make sure that your passion shows until you don’t have to try anymore. Overcome the obstacles by treating them as steppingstones to success. Put your passion out there for others to see. And check out these passionate people to see examples of genuine passion: Walt Disney; Ben Franklin; Mahatma Gandhi; John F. Kennedy: Martin Luther King, Jr.; Abraham Lincoln; Nelson Mandela; Ronald Reagan; Mother Teresa and my dear friend Alana Nichols. They all have inspiring stories that could fuel your passion. Enjoy your journey of infused passion!