Pejman Ghadimi is the author of "Third Circle Theory," which explains how some of today's top visionaries are made. He is the CEO of Secret Entourage and Secret Academy, the latter being a unique platform that helps motivate, educate and improve the lives of young entrepreneurs worldwide.
The majority of people become passionate about something at one point or another, but few turn their passion into a successful business venture that enables them to work on what they care about every day.
Since retiring from my successful career in finance, I discovered that teaching leadership and entrepreneurship was, and still is, my real passion. I'm able to do this every day through my company, Secret Entourage. I have now coached hundreds of successful people on finding their passion and applying it into their businesses. I noticed a trend among my clients succeeding with these four steps.
Understand the Difference Between Love and Passion
It's important to understand whether we're feeling love or passion for something in order to avoid following dead leads. There's a fine line between them, but we experience love far more than passion. Passion is the fuel needed to keep getting up after each failure, so it's important to be passionate about the line of business you embark on. Passion, just like love, starts with an emotional reaction, but where it differentiates from love is when it requires you to take action, create change or simply remain involved in something. For example, I may love cars, but I sure don't find happiness being around them every second of the day. On the other hand, I'm passionate about helping people make their dream businesses a reality.
One of the best ways to eliminate wasting time on things you only love and aren't passionate about is to focus on activities that build skills you can charge for. Talking about cars all day, for example, won't actually get me anywhere. However, if I chose to start a blog and write about them or become a mechanic, I am now shifting my love to passion and engaging in activities that can later turn my passion into a business. Think about what you love, how you can turn that into passion and how you can drive revenue.
Have a Heightened Level of Awareness
Self-assessment is crucial. As mentioned in my first point above, the biggest obstacle in finding your passion is following all the wrong things simply because you love them. Part of the process requires you to be able to identify when you are chasing a dead lead. Being conscious of our environment permits us to identify opportunities within the things we love. If we love animals, for example, then perhaps our passion lies in helping them. By seeing beyond just the idea of creating a shelter or some other form of care, we may be able to identify other ways to help our cause and create passion from the love we have for something.
The idea of finding your passion is once again to elevate yourself to act on something you love. Once you identified something worth pursuing, study the industry as a whole and not just what you understand of it. Start by using free methods, such as searching online for businesses you may not have heard of or for positions within organizations related to your passion. In the example above, start the search with the word "animal care" and simply read about various ways others are involved in the field. Then narrow your search based on each type of care you find interesting, such as "animal shelter care" or " animal rescue." The more you explore, the more aware you become and the easier it is to link your passion to a sustainable path for your business.
Find Your Natural Talent
Most people are naturally better at some things than others, which often becomes a big part of how they can find their passion in life. When it comes to business, you can focus on your forte while finding ways to compensate where you are lacking, like getting a partner or hiring someone to fill in the gaps. Be resourceful to cultivate the skills you need for your business. I found my natural talent for coaching after mentoring people on a regular basis. When I turned it into my business, I made time to learn new skills like web page design, writing and online video production. If you quickly identify your natural talents, then you can learn the skills you need to transform it into something you are paid to do.
Use Belief to Unlock Your Passion
Since belief is based on experience, think of it as the direction your passion takes. Then, think of love as support for your passion, and confidence as the best way to maintain momentum. Have faith when you feel the adrenaline or fear of risk-taking in business. It's part of a purpose-driven life. For example, I am good friends with a renowned chef who moved to the United States from Italy after his restaurant concept failed. He believed his cooking would be more appropriate for the U.S. market. With no money, capital or partners, and only belief and talent, he started a new life in a new country. His work ethic, coupled with his talent, landed him a job at the restaurant that would later become his own and part of his network of over a hundred restaurants 15 years later.
When you're passionate about what you do, working doesn't really seem like "work" anymore. It's like the adage, "Do what you love, and you won't work a day in your life." You might love something that catches your interest, but it's passion that drives the persistence in building a business. Let your passion, awareness, talent and belief trigger themselves, and you'll realize that you have no limits.