How To Discover What Your Passion Is

Finding your passion is one of the most important things you will do in life. With every day commitments, like work and family, it can be hard to find time to explore what makes you happy and what works for you.

This can feel even more difficult if you don’t know what your passions are. You may spend your life chasing something that doesn’t satisfy you, or staying with something you no longer enjoy because you don’t want to hurt yourself by changing direction.

Finding out how to discover your passions is an essential part of personal growth. Once you know what sparks your interest and motivation, you can use them as a tool to succeed in whatever career or area of life you choose.

You will also recognize that there is a right thing to do next in any situation, which will help you achieve success. This article has helpful tips on how to identify your passions.

Make a wish list

The next step in discovering your passion is making a list of all the things you like doing. A easy way to do this is by thinking about what you are currently doing and adding to that list anything else you would like to be doing.

You can make your list as short or long as you want, but try to keep it under three items at least for now. Once you have done this, then add any additional skills or anything else you would like to learn more about.

By having a look through both lists, you will find there are some similarities between the two. These similarities indicate these things play a big part in helping you feel happy and content with yourself and your life.

They may even inspire you to pursue them further so that you can enjoy them more fully. By taking time to reflect on these activities, you will also recognize more parts of yourself related to them.

Look at your life

A lot of people spend their lives chasing what they want, instead of exploring what they are curious about.

They’re constantly seeking out experiences that make them feel good and learning more things that pay the bills. But there comes a time when you have to ask yourself if this is the right thing for you to be doing with your life.

You may already know what you like and don’t like, what makes you happy and unhappy, and you may even know how to earn money pursuing your passions, but only because you’ve done it before.

If you ever feel nervous or uncomfortable while engaging in your current passion, then it’s probably time to look elsewhere.

It’s not telling yourself “I should do this” or “I ought to enjoy this”; it’s just knowing within yourself that you will never get happier spending your time on something than you were last week, no matter what you're investing your energy into.

There's a reason we settle down after college, why some people stay in their jobs longer than necessary, and why some people keep eating food that tastes bad. It takes a lot of effort to change things that you've invested in, which is why most people don't.

But if you really want to experience happiness, you need to invest in things that aren't going to give you their full reward until long afterwards.

Ask yourself what you enjoy doing

We’ve discussed before here on The Successal System how important it is to figure out your mission, why you exist, and what matters most to you. Now we are talking about another key piece of this puzzle — what do you love to do?

Many people never truly find their passion because they don’t ask themselves what they like to do. They assume that when they wake up in the morning, everything will feel like a job until bedtime, so they never explore any areas of interest or possible careers.

If you ever feel tired or bored during the day, try asking yourself what you were doing just minutes ago. You might be surprised at all the things you have chosen to pursue thus far!

Your passions aren’t limited to career paths though. There are many ways to make money by doing what you love to do. For example, someone who loves to read could write a book and sell it, run a reading tour business, work as a literary agent, etc.

On the other hand, someone who loves painting could paint for art galleries or create their own style, teach others to paint, start an artistic company, and so on.

Ask yourself what you are good at

It is very important to ask yourself “What am I good at?” This is a simple question, but it can be tricky to answer.

It is easy to assume that because you are doing something well now, then you like doing those things. But before you know, you have to evaluate whether or not you want to keep doing them!

If you don't, then why not? You could be missing out on some of the most significant parts of your life.

Your passion isn’t always an easy thing to identify. But if you try looking within, listen to what you feel, and make changes when necessary, all will become clear in time.

Do you like the feeling of success?

We are living in an era where having more is the most important thing. Having more money, having bigger houses, owning a boat or car – all these things make us feel good for a while, but they are not lasting happiness.

Having more and being successful brings short-term feelings of joy, but it does not bring long term fulfillment. This is why there are so many people out there — we have too much access to this false sense of happiness.

It’s easy to get distracted by what has to be had “next” because you don’t know who will take away your possessions tomorrow. You can easily find yourself chasing after what you want instead of what you already have.

We also live in an age where we have too much choice. There are just too many options available to us! Choosing one option over another feels like victory, but it isn’t. It’s only a victory if you are happy with that option.

So how do you discover what you truly love to do? By doing it. -Dr.

Try to be optimistic

It’s easy to get distracted in this world, especially when you’re young. Life is hard!

As we grow older, it becomes more difficult to find your passion. This can feel really frustrating as you try to figure out what you want to do with your life and career.

The good news is that it's possible to work through this stage of life. You are not obligated to enjoy what you love until you eventually give up or lose money trying.

There are many ways to discover what your passions are. Some say talking about yourself and looking within is the way to know what you like, while others suggest doing things you enjoy and see how they sort of stick.

Neither approach has one right answer for everyone, but both can help you identify strengths and areas of interest. Here are some tips on how to uncover your passion.

Become a digital nomad

Being passionate about something comes down to you being able to articulate what it is that you love doing. It’s more than just showing up every now and then to do something you like, it's feeling engaged with and excited by your work.

If you want to know what you're passion is, you have to be willing to risk not having it.

You need to be open to not having what you think you should have as well as what you think you can't live without. You have to believe there are things out there that you will feel good doing even if they aren't necessarily in line with what you thought you wanted or needed.

And most of all, you have to be confident enough in yourself to try new things and take chances.

Take baby steps

Even if you already have your career path planned out, it is never too early to assess yourself and determine what you like doing.

This is an excellent way to do this as soon as possible!

By taking some small breaks from work and exploring different areas of life, you will eventually find that you naturally segue into other things.

You may also discover that you are more passionate about something else than you thought.

Finding your passion is not easy, but it is definitely worth investing in yourself by looking within and beyond your current skills set.

General tips: Do anything for fun or feel relaxed and happy then look at why you felt that way and see what you can learn from it.

Also, ask people around you who know you well whether they think you seem passionate about certain things and listen to their answers.

There’s no point chasing after things that don’t make you feel any sort of feeling unless you recognize that things that bring you joy are important to you — which they are for many others.