Everyone gets “burned out” working jobs that are repetitive and tedious. Most professionals are working for management that appears not to care about the businesses they manage. Employees become “burned out” constantly by being overlooked for promotions and positive recognition. How many times have you or someone you know been dissatisfied with management due to a feeling of being unappreciated? Have you ever started a business or worked for a business that you were truly not passionate about? How long did it take before you realized that you lacked the passion and purpose to successfully operate or work for the business?
“What’s money? A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do.” Bob Dylan
I find that my purpose is embedded in the passion I have for helping people. My business (Tech From Vets) focuses on helping business owners enhance their digital presence through technology.I donate my time and money to veterans’ organizations (Florida Fallen Heroes) and I support veteran business owners in my community through mentorship and education. I sincerely believe my business is not in the marketplace to generate revenue, we are in the marketplace to help people succeed. I understand the value of money and I can’t grow my business without it. However, money is not my sole purpose or passion for running my business.
“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there’s love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” Ella Fitzgerald
In life, we should always be searching for the passion and purpose that drives us to be better professionals. Some people find purpose in their children, a new house or a new car. What happens when the children move out, the house needs a new roof or the car has maintenance issues? Our purpose will not drive us very far; we must find the passion in our purpose to truly be successful.
“You can do anything as long as you have the passion, the drive, the focus, and the support.” Sabrina Bryan
My first wife would probably tell you that our marriage lacked passion. The purpose of marrying her was to make our bond concrete and to show her that I was serious about our relationship. I was away from home serving in the military, the distance contributed to the loss of a passionate connection with her. Frequent field exercises (mini deployments) and a year-long tour in Iraq, caused our relationship to suffer greatly. While I was deployed to Iraq, she stepped out on me, she simply lost her passion for our relationship. The purpose of her telling me she stepped out was not only to clear her conscience, but to validate the reason she felt the need to cheat on me. Although I was angry and hurt, I could not deny the fact that I was not able to love her as passionately as she needed. Our relationship never gained the passion we once shared before my deployment overseas, needless to say, we were headed down the path of divorce. This same example can be applied to running or working for a business. I challenge you to find your purpose and your passion, you don’t want to lose your business or be separated from the business you work for due to the infamous “burn out” and lack of commitment and purpose.
“Building a startup is more about love than money. People with experience in big businesses have learned that you won’t be happy even if well paid unless you enjoy the job.” Forbes
In my passion for writing great content for The Huffington Post, I entered one of my articles titled, Business Casual Drives Mediocrity into the 2016 Electronic Data Intelligence Technology Writers’ competition.
The purpose of submitting my entry was to build confidence in my writing by having others judge the quality of my content. My passion and my purpose prevented the feeling of rejection from setting in and clouding my mood and judgment. I shared my entry into the competition with my close friends who motivated me to be confident in my abilities and to submit my articles to more competitions in the future to build confidence. I was amazed to receive an email a few days later stating that my article was awarded the 2016 Electronic Data Intelligence Technology Writers’ award!
My passion and purpose guided me along the way and my colleagues rekindled my motivation. I am now in the process of entering more writing competitions and I am also on a mission to write for more major websites! My purpose has recently evolved into representing injured Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom veterans positively through journalism.
My passion fuels my purpose, I have increased my social media reach and my business has been rewarded through my hard work, dedication, and inspiration. Your objective is to find the passion in your purpose, by doing so, I guarantee you will notice a positive change in your life!