Passion and Expression: How to be Awesome

“Avid” has to be one of my most favorite adjectives ever, because no other word really wraps together the feeling of hunger, enthusiasm and pure enjoyment that comes with really pursuing something to your fullest potential. Listen to it a few times: when someone is described as an ‘avid’ cyclist, an ‘avid’ gamer, do you automatically think they’re a professional competitor? That they’re OCD about something? No, it’s both less and more than that- almost like the person really comes alive in that domain.

You know what I’m talking about- it’s that sudden snap in someone’s actions, that excitement and readiness to go, that real drive to go and pursue something- it’s the drive that makes someone awesome at what they do. Yet even so it’s something that can easily sound hollow when that spark isn’t there, which usually happens in the context of a tool rather than a concept. Can you see someone really get excited about blogging? No. But can you see someone being an avid educator? Absolutely: Their excitement comes from the contribution they provide and the respect they earn rather than the tools they use.

The best way to describe it, perhaps, is to separate passion and the expression thereof. As an example, I’m going to use my own dad, because frankly he’s the best example I can think of. His primary passion is problem solving. Taking the crowbar of his brain and jamming it into a particularly interesting problem to see if he can crack it is what he lives for. Now imagine how this might express itself, in how many different situations this might apply.

Need extra paper? I did- overcoming a particular challenge or problem is applicable almost anywhere. In his case the long-term chosen primary expression is quantum physics, but there’s no reason it couldn’t have been radio repair, satellite telemetry or dog training since each of them provides a series of always new and increasingly complicated problems to solve.

So lets get around to what your passion might be. Is it exploration? Healing? Craftsmanship, education or guardianship? I’d give you a long list of how to figure this out, but chances are it’s already blatantly obvious (you may not have bothered to look). Remember it’s not what you do, it’s why you do it. Take a long hard look at your day to day, figure out what you really look forward to, why, and find the common ground amongst them all.