The 2 Biggest Obstacles to Finding Your Passions

The 2 Biggest Obstacles to Finding Your Passions

People talk all the time about following your passions, but does it just leave you so FRUSTRATED?

If you’re struggling with one of these big obstacles, it might.

You might wantto do what you love, but feel you can’t even get started.

You might feel overwhelmed, lost, or both.

You might feel like you’re missing out on all the amazing things you could do, if you just knew where to focus.

What are these obstacles I’m talking about?

Here they are:

Having too many interests and feeling unfocused and scattered all the time.
Having no idea where to even begin looking for passions.

These two big problems related to living your passions are actually two sides of the same coin.

The problem is actually a lack of focus on the TRUE self.

If you areoverwhelmed because you have so many things you love, you feel pulled in 10 different directions, and you feel like 9 lives wouldn't be enough to do all the things you want to do, you probably never get anywhere.

When you’ve lost your compass – the one that points to what’s most important to you – you might have lost your sense of direction and get NOTHING done (or at least nothing that feels like it really means something.)

OR, maybe you don’t really know what you're passionate about?

Maybe you’re so busy with all the responsibilities you have that you never have time for yourself. Perhaps knowing yourself wasn’t a priority or a value you grew up with, and only now do you see what it means to not have that.

Rest assured - it's not that your passionsdon't exist, just that they have been ignored for so long that they're sitting in the corner, sulking until they are coaxed out.

At the core, the problem is the same - a disconnection from who you are, and needing to find your way back to YOU.

So what’s to be done about it?

The way around these two obstacles is the same. You need to understand YOU. Here are some suggestions for doing that:

MAKE time for yourself. Whether you’re too busy or it’s never been a priority, if you want to find your passions you have to get to know the real you. Make time to get to know your real self. Schedule it into your calendar (really) and then use it with suggestions below.

Tune in. Journal, meditate, find time for quiet. In these moments thoughts, ideas and images will bubble up from inside. They are telling you something, so pay attention.

Experience. If you feel like you don’t know where your passions are, make time to experience new things. Take a pottery class, explore fiction writing, join a running club. Find new things that you think you might be interested in and see where it takes you.

Consolidate. If you have too many passions, see if they fit into categories. The reason to do this is not because you can’t or shouldn’t be multi-passionate (you can). But categories may help you to focus on an idea. For example, your love of trail running, photography and birds may point to a passion “category” of enjoying the outdoors. Once you understand that passion, you may be able to focus on it and pursue your path more clearly.

Notice. As you go through your day, notice when you’re lit up and when you’re feeling flat. These peaks and valleys help you notice your passions. You’ll discover things you love that you didn’t know about before, and you’ll discover that some of the things you thought you loved are actually not quite what you expected.

Whether you’re bouncing from idea to idea or feeling lost and wondering why you can’t seem to get it, with a little soul searching you can find what puts that fire in your belly!

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