How did you find your passion?

[Zaphirah]

I am coming up to a crossroads in my life. In about a year and a half my last baby is going off to school full time. I haven't had a job since I was 23. 10 years ago I was put in bedrest, then had the twins 11 weeks premature and decided to be a stay at home mom. I never had a career. I never quite finished my degree because I lost interest in the field I was studying. I can't imagine finding a job that I can go to FORTY HOURS a week. The only place I ever enjoyed working was t Whole Foods, but that's an hour away from our new house.

So how did YOU find you job? How did you know it was something that you wanted to do long term? How did you know you would be good at it? How did you find your PASSION and make a living at it? Tell me, please! :)

[Care4raw]

Hi there..your thread caught my attentiuon as i just heard on the radio a great tip about this. The person/expert was on a show and she said write down three things you would do if you knew you could not fail. Then just live with that list for awhile, don't act on anything just yet. I guess the idea was to let it sort of organically evolve as you looked at it for the next few weeks. Then I got out of the car and never heard the rest!I just thought that was great advice.

My passion is photography and I found it through a highschool teacher putting a camera in my hand.

Good luck. Great post.

[ironicquest]

I've always loved healing and energywork. Always took classes in things like reiki, infant massage and reflexology just for fun.

A couple of years ago, my oldest son had some learning issues. I ended up having him treated with a type of energywork designed to address dyslexia, ADHD, and auditory and visual processing issues. It worked and he was able to learn to read!

So it was a no-brainer that I wanted to train in this technique. I finish up at the end of Jan. I get to do something that changes the function of people's brains and is meaningful and lucrative for me as well.

I've wanted work that I'm passionate about my whole life. At 38, I have it!
In answer to your specific questions--it feels like it found me. I had no experience with LDs before my son. It really showed me how children and their parents struggle with these issues. To be able to impact people's lives in this way is just so powerful for me...

Question for you... you mention 40 hours a week. Do you want a 40 hour a week job working for someone else? Have you thought of starting your own business?

[StarFire]

I listened to so many people say that when you find your passion and you do that for a 'living' then its not like work....

dh is an artist --- it's his passion -- he's a professional musican and fabulous at it -- he's a well known glass blower and a master potter -- fabulous at all mediums...

when he married me - he put a paint brush in my hand and some porcelain in front of me and said -- paint --- sculpt!! So - I did. and strangely enough - I had a talent for it... Did it professionally for many years - and enjoyed it --- but was it my passion... hmmm... not really. I did (and do) have fun with it --- but I also find it to be a lot of pressure (i did a lot of commission work).

My passion... well - we found each other. Here at RFT. I found raw foods... it saved my life and my marriage. Being here on this forum - blogging and trying out new recipes-- I became almost obsessed with it --- I have NEVER been so passionate about anything in my life-- other than my husband and children of course.

I discovered my heart was longing to attend Alissa's Certification Class - but for me -- I knew that was a financial impossibility.... and my heart mourned. then one day -- Spirit just said -- GO FOR IT -- GO FOR IT NOW... and I did... then a miracle happened - the funds appeared and ... now - I'm going to fulfill my dreams...

dh used to tell me - you wil KNOW when you find your passion... and I always asked ... but HOW will I know? and dh would always respond... If you don't know -- then you haven't found it yet...! ;) and wink at me....

When I realized my passion was to become a LIVING ON LIVE FOODS CHEF, instructor and life coach... I KNEW -- THAT I KNEW .... THAT I KNEW.... my heart was filled to overflowing with joy ... and yes... passion...

If I could quit my day job and do this 24/7 I would do it in the blink of an eye... but in time... in time... I am a patient woman and when the time is right (and Spirit will let me know)... then I will step into this arena and the magic will happen. In the mean time - I will build my business up - and allow it to grow...

how will you know when you find your passion... you will know... ;)

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/ththdreamicon.jpg

[beppa66]

Sometimes you don't find it...it finds you.
Either by natural talent - like me an artist, or by discovering something that you've never done before and loving it (like beach volleyball or bikram yoga). Other times it's destiny. For me I became very sick and needed healing and found raw, my new passion.

My best advice is to listen to your inner child "voice" and pray. If you don't truly enjoy something, stop doing it. If you do enjoy it do it more often. That nurturing of self starts the honest dreaming process that says it's ok to be who you naturally are. I had a friend who used to go running every single day, one day we were talking about it and I said I really disliked running & find it boring. I was quite surprised when she said she hated it too. She only did it to stay in shape. So I asked her why she didn't substitute something she enjoyed. That one suggestion, has leapfrogged her to moving to another state, opening her own business and quitting a boring corporate job which she hated but had been at for over 10 years. Take a step towards being who you want to be and enjoying yourself...the rest will take care of itself.

People enjoy their work when they are madly in love with it. Ask yourself, would I do this even if it didn't have a dollar figure attached to it? If the answer is yes, follow...passion is eminent.

PS. one final word...sometimes you will start out thinking you are going in one direction but during the journey you'll realize you want to tweak the vision. Allow yourself that deviation. Watch a child play with a toy, when he's done with it he has no guilt about laying it aside and going after a new one. Keeps things interesting.

Good luck on your journey!!!

[OneBite@aTime]

Hello-like you I am a SAHM too! My youngest daughter will start kindergarten in the Fall of 09......and was faced with the same question.....so in Aug of 07 I started college part time for the first time at age 32! Look into taking a class......it may shock you-I take classes on Saturday-so that I'm only away from my girls one day a week (not even a full day) and I wait until they are in bed to do my homework-it has allowed me to get some personal time-while learning-take what sounds fun-after my first class I stopped asking myself.....and I just know it will show itself to me!

[Aleesha Sattva]

you have some GREAT advice. it's an honour to read everyone's posts.

i'm 44 and i never had any idea what my path was... what my passion was. so i would just try everything that interested me. eventually i noticed a theme was forming... and so i began following that theme a little closer.

in the end... one day my phone rang. a woman on the other end asked me to write an article for her magazine... long story short, it turned into a reg. gig and then i came on as a 'one time' editor for an issue... which turned into a reg. gig. then i started my own magazine.

did i find it when i wanted to? nope. it found me when i was ready.

so don't limit your options. try lots of things. get a part time job, maybe two if you have two different areas of interest. take a course, take a bunch of classes in different things...

but honestly... you need to dip in your toes and try it all... cause the only way to know what you love is to find out what you don't love!

[Cinammon]

Hi

For me, it was reading something that went something like: your passion is whatever you can do without feeling tired/drained by it, however long you do it for and, when you've finished, you get up the next day ready to do it again! Something that gives you energy while you're doing it.

Sorry; that's not the best paraphrasing! But I liked the whole idea of it, and it really resonated for me; was helpful in sorting out the passion from the ought to do/like doing/need results from/ thing I thought my passion might have been.

Another good one I followed was: what would I do if I was a multi-millionaire and never needed to work again?

Whatever doesn't feel like 'work', really; whatever makes you feel: 'This is what I'm here to do'.

It can be something you like but don't feel you'd be any good at. Again, I read something like, 'If you like it, and want to do it, you'll be able to do it.'

So don't rule anything out! To put it bluntly: whatever gives you a buzz!

Really: don't rule anything out. Now you're ready, something will come!

Ask the Angels; ask the Universe! (if you're into that. I've found it does work.)

All the best with it.

Cinammon

[jacsam]

I am coming up to a crossroads in my life. In about a year and a half my last baby is going off to school full time. I haven't had a job since I was 23. 10 years ago I was put in bedrest, then had the twins 11 weeks premature and decided to be a stay at home mom. I never had a career. I never quite finished my degree because I lost interest in the field I was studying. I can't imagine finding a job that I can go to FORTY HOURS a week. The only place I ever enjoyed working was t Whole Foods, but that's an hour away from our new house.

So how did YOU find you job? How did you know it was something that you wanted to do long term? How did you know you would be good at it? How did you find your PASSION and make a living at it? Tell me, please! :)
Since you've been a stay at home mom are you going back to work because you need to or because you want to.....that makes a big difference in what you might choose. If it's your passion they say you'd do it even if you didn't get paid for. On the other hand sometimes if you do what you love for your work it becomes work instead of your pleasure. It's nice that you have awhile to work this all out......and we all know you will. Good Luck...Judith

[Authenticme]

I'm a great one for letting experience be your teacher. I tend to be naturally curious. So, I allow myself to experience things and if I like them they become hobbies and then the hobby because a career or a business.

Like James Cagney said once you find what you love, figure out a way to get paid for it.

That's how I've had my career of 14yrs and then my recent business of 3 years.

Allow for exploration and fun. Sometimes finding your bliss is almost accidental. Well, more like synchronitic.

Another quote I heard was something like when you set your mind to doing something, the universe will move heaven and earth so that you can accomplish it. Meaning that the universe conspires with us. Like in Starfire's case and my case and I'm sure true for so many others.

[Firicia]

Wel I have to say I was born with mine, but didn't really discover it mentally until I was about 13. I always loved music, but at 13 I really got into singing. As soon as I would open my mouth and try to learn singing this fire would come out, the feeling was like being compleatly connected to everything and all love and happieness in that moment. I know that sounds intense but thats what it is for me. Even now at 22 singing can move me to tears because I am so in love.

For a few years I stoped following it, barely did it, and was pretty unhappy. I started believing that music is only fun and can't lead to a career. Well lately for the past few months I decided that this is it, this is me, and the people who tell you that you can't usually are the ones who never really tried. I am now going to try out for music school, and have met people making a living with music and have advice on what to do after schooling.

But as for knowing it's my passion I will say this, it comes from within. Also the fact is that sometimes I won't want to go to bed because that is 8 hours I won't get to spend singing or listening to music:p

I wish I could give advice but the truth is I was connected to what I am passionate about and meant to do from a young age, so I don't have the experience of looking for it, because I am it.

[Authenticme]

Yeah, i could get with that your passion lies in your natural gifts. I "discovered" my passion or it discovered me when I was 23. The ironic thing was it was in my name all along. My name is an obscure one. I didn't find out what it meant until I was 30. It meant "teacher" when translated. By the time, I found this out I had been teaching for 7 years. It was right there all the time! Sometimes the answers are so simple, it's hard!