Passion Part 2 - Why do we need Passion?

WHY DO WE NEED PASSION?

I know this seems like an obvious point, so I’ll get straight to it: this is a business that you MUST be passionate about to thrive; otherwise you will be in constant anguish.  I’m not going to enumerate all the things that are difficult about the mortgage game – that would be totally counterproductive! – but just think about how many times you’ve been talking about work with a friend outside of the business and he says “Man, I just don’t know how you do it.”

The answer, of course, is that you love it.  Maybe you don’t know exactly what you love about it yet, but you know that without that passion, the day to day of the business would be overwhelming.  So other than intrinsic survival, what are the other benefits of being passionate?

Well, for one, being passionate induces self-confidence.  As I said earlier, when you are passionate about something, you begin to see how everything in your life fits together to better suit that passion.  This includes career passion – when you love what you are doing, you will have greater confidence in actions and decisions you take to further your career.  Who couldn’t benefit from a little career confidence?

This increased confidence influences another benefit of passion – reduced stress.  When you aren’t second-guessing yourself at every juncture, your stress levels plummet.  Further, we often don’t realize how much stress we put on ourselves by quelling our passions when in reality being passionate can be a natural state.  Resisting that natural state because we are afraid of appearing overzealous can be taxing on the spirit.  So living in that natural state of passion – even if it’s for something as seemingly mundane as the mortgage business – is a welcome relief.

Another benefit of living passionately is that it enhances relationships, which is one of the cornerstones of our business.  You see, people understand passion, and they respect it.  And your clients will respect sincere displays of that passion for your career.  They will find it much easier to trust and rely on an someone who truly enjoys what he does, rather than some pushy snake who could just as easily be selling vacuums, used cars, or igloos, - or, even worse, an apathetic paper pusher who really couldn’t care one way or another about helping their clients reach their goals.   

Again, people understand passion, and they are drawn to people who possess it.
 

That's it for today, look for part 3 sometime next week.  Until then, I resolve to seek progress, not perfection using Passion as my fuel...will you join me?

As always, comments are appreciated and do me a favor - don't keep me a secret!  Encourage others to follow my blog in their attempt to seek Progress.

MLO's - Click here to find out how I can increase your income!

Click here to order any needed education or find out what it takes to get licensed in another state.

Passion

Over the next 3 or 4 weeks we are going to explore PASSION.  Specifically,  my plan is to discuss what it is, why we need it, and how it can benefit us.

WHAT IS PASSION?

We hear a lot about passion in the business world today, so much so that it’s easy to take its importance as a given (if you need it), - or, if you think you’ve got it, to take it for granted - and overlook the need to explore passion in our own lives.  Well, my friend, let me tell you: passion is one topic that it is absolutely worth revisiting over and over, because it is the underlying motivator for success.

Let’s start by settling the fundamentals.  What is this thing called passion?  Is it an emotion?  A state of being?  An energy that motivates us?  A way of thinking?  All of these could describe passion in some way, but I’d like to suggest that passion is something more – passion is a life force.  Specifically, this force manifests itself as an intense sensation which compels us to act.  Once we feel a surge of passion, we almost can’t help but do something about it! 

Think about it – an inventor stays up into the wee hours of the morning tinkering with his masterpiece.  An avid cyclist happens upon a challenging route and is out there at 4:30 the next morning before work, huffing up the hills.  A salesperson who believes in his product pounds the phones all day long, not even stopping for lunch.  They do this because passion will not let them rest.  It acts as an internal force, is expressed externally through action and enthusiasm.  Often, this enthusiasm leads us to see connections we may not have previously recognized – the inventor sees the cogs aligning just so, the cyclist sees every dip in the road as a challenge, and the salesman recognizes an opportunity while chatting up a neighbor in the grocery.  When we are passionate about something, we use everything in our lives to its full potential, with the ultimate goal of fulfilling the purpose or cause that our passion dictates.

Passion, in its purest form, is not rational.  That may be part of what we like about it – it is such a raw sensation, undeterred by the reason that so frequently (and necessarily) dominates our thinking.  And while I believe that passion overall is a positive force, it is good to remember that it lacks reason, and it is up to us to apply the necessary amount of reason to the way in which we express our passions.  For example, you may be passionate about swimming, but without training and preparation, you probably shouldn’t attempt to cross the English Channel.

One more thing – I believe that passion is a natural state of being.  There is nothing “weird” or “overzealous” about being passionate.  Look at the way a child throws himself into his favorite activity – simple though it may be.  He chases his favorite ball with excitement, waves his arms in triumph when the last puzzle piece fits, and throws his whole body into an embrace.  He has not yet learned to externally mask the passion he feels internally.  Obviously, as we age, our passions become more refined and we learn about appropriate societal behavior, but in some sense, we also let our expressions of passion become dulled.

I’d like you to take a moment and reflect on your current passion levels in your own life.  Nothing formal, you don’t have to write anything down or make a list – although if you feel like it, by all means, please do!  Just take a second and think about your responses to the following questions:

What is passion?

How do you exhibit passion in your life currently?

What are you passionate about?

That's it for today, look for part 2 titled "Why do we need passion?" sometime next week.  Until then, I resolve to seek progress, not perfection using Passion as my fuel...will you join me?

As always, comments are appreciated and do me a favor, don't keep me a secret.  Encourage others to follow my blog in their attempt to seek Progress.

MLO's - Click here to find out how I can increase your income!

Click here to order any needed education or find out what it takes to get licensed in another state.