Why is Passion So Important to One’s Success?
Posted on October 23, 2015 by Jack Perry Jr, One of Thousands of Executive Coaches on Noomii.
Top 5 reasons why passion is so important, and what you can do to keep it.
We’ve all heard people say that if we find our passion in life, then success will come easy. It’s a true statement, except for the fact that those same people neglect to tell us how passion is created. Now, let me just start off by saying that the passion you have for a sport, is not the same type of passion you might use professionally. For example, if you have a passion for football, it may simply mean that you enjoy watching it on Sunday afternoons but have no desire to try to become a professional athlete. So it’s important to remember that there are different types of passion. For the purpose of this post, I wanted to discuss the type of passion we need to be successful in our professional lives. If time and money was not an issue, what would you want to be doing starting tomorrow for the rest of your life, or a good portion of it?
Whether you’re looking to start a new business or just want to find a career that you’ll be happy attending every day, there are certain things you need to look for, in order to gain that passion. Below I’ve compiled a list of the top 5 things you need to do (in my opinion, of course), not only to find that passion but to also keep it.
1. Explore something you’re interested in: In a consistently changing market, it’s so important to find a niche that will stick out from the rest. Whether it’s a product you want to sell or a software you want to advertise, finding a specific niche among a huge market will really help you succeed. It’s important to note, however, that the niche you choose has to be in line with what you believe in, and what you believe in is directly correlated to what interests you. Steve Jobs wouldn’t have been as successful as he was if he was never interested in technology, or if he never believed in the Apple computer. If you love fitness and nutrition, for example, try to find a niche market that you can target. Is there something you can offer related to fitness that is new and fresh, and hasn’t been done before?
2. Do your research: Once you find your niche, start reading and doing research about the market. If you’ve come up with the best new app to help people stay in shape, you need to know everything you can about other apps, organizations, and people that are doing similar things. Know your targeted market inside out. This is especially important once you start advertising your product to potential customers. If you don’t know the industry, it will be twice as hard to sell your idea to others. Know what you’re talking about by reading up on other companies and talking to past employees. Don’t forget about the consumer though – sometimes we get so caught up in trying to make our product the best that we forget to talk to the people that will be buying it. If you don’t know what they want, then you won’t do very well. It’s just that simple.
3. Have role models: Have you ever heard of the expression, don’t reinvent the wheel? Well, that is something to definitely take to heart when you’re starting out. Why spend so much of your time trying to find out what works and what doesn’t when you can just learn from the mistakes of others? Don’t wait until you fail to learn. Instead, look for people who were or are in your industry and learn from them. Are they successful? How did they get to where they are? Time is one thing that we don’t have enough of, so it is vital to find role models who have taken similar paths and learn from their journeys. Find someone who was successful at what they did, and do everything that they did. It’s sure to save months, if not, years of your time.
4. Set goals: This step is pretty self-explanatory, yet so many people fail to do it. Have a list and write down everything you want to accomplish within the next year, however big or small. Writing things down will help you stay on track of things, and is the number one piece of advice Virgin mogul, Richard Branson suggests when it comes to starting a business. As soon as you write down your tasks, you’re one step closer to actually achieving them. And reward yourself! Every time you complete a task, do something nice for yourself – it makes the process a lot more fun and gives you another incentive to do them.
5. Maintain perspective, or in some cases change it: I know the process of self-discovery and starting your own endeavor can be quite stressful, not to mention overwhelming. It’s important to remember that you will fail at times, and not everything will go the way you want it to, but it’s what will only make you stronger in the long run as you continue to learn from those mistakes. Remember to not let the bad times bring you down. Keep everything into perspective and remind yourself that you’re doing this for a reason. Learn how to encourage and motivate yourself every day, so that those negative thoughts don’t consistently creep up on you. Maintaining, or changing, your perspective will go a long way in staying focused on your vision.
The passion you have for something really determines not only how successful you will be at it, but also how far you’re willing to go to get to where you want to be. According to some of the most successful leaders, passion is what fuels and keeps your confidence train running. The steps above can help you find that passion and lead you down a path that you’re happy with. You just have to try.
