How To Find New, Exciting Passions With Ease
Our subject today is “passion.”
But, not just any passion or passions.
Rather, our subject today is the passions you enjoyed when you were younger.
Some of these passions may remain familiar and frequent, while others have been forgotten.
You will, by reading this essay, learn how to find those old passions and, then, bring them into the present moment and, in turn, this chapter in your life.
By doing so, you can live a life that is rich with moments of enthusiasm, inspiration, and creativity.
And, of course, you can enjoy these passions and experience the fun that such enjoyment brings!
Your Old, Yet Beloved, Passions
No matter who you are, you are passionate.
You are passionate about something.
Many things, most likely.
The tricky thing is figuring out what those passions are and, then, doing something with them.
Right before we dive into how you can do that, though, here is the definition of “passion”: a thing arousing enthusiasm.
So, anything can be a passion.
Even if it doesn’t appear to fall under the label of what is typically considered a “passion” — making music or painting, to name two examples — if you’re enthusiastic about it, then it’s a passion.
A passion of yours.
A passion that can, and should, be acknowledged, respected, and engaged with.
To uncover your passions, then, there are two questions you can ask.
The first question is “When you were younger, what are ten things you really, really enjoyed?”
“Younger,” within this context, can mean a few years ago to decades ago.
Right after you ask this question — and, of course, answer it — there’s another question you can ask.
“When you were younger, what did you most often think and daydream about?”
Once again, “Younger” is, within this context, open-ended.
Right after you answer these questions, you can begin the next step of this process.
Answering Your Questions
You can answer the two questions outlined earlier in any way you choose.
To make it slightly easier, though, here are two examples, from my own life.
For the first question, some of my passions were:
• Reading Fantasy & Science-Fiction Books
• Playing Video Games
• LARPing/Playing Pretend, With My Friends
• Coming Up With Fantasy Worlds
• Developing New Ideas For Games And Stories
• Drawing Strange Creatures And Silly Cartoons
• Swimming
• Listening To Music
• Reading About The Making Of Games & Films
• Listening To Comedy/Reading Comedy
For the second question, my thoughts and daydreams were often centered on:
• Visiting Other, More Fantastical, Worlds
• Living Another Life As Someone Similar, But Different
• Beautiful Women And, In Turn, The Aesthetics Of Beauty
• Getting Home, From School, And Either Playing Games Or Using The Internet
• Directing A Film Or Television Show, With My Own Unique Style And Themes
• Creating A Game That Was Beloved And, Of Course, Unique
• Visiting Other Parts Of The World
And, well, there are probably many others. But, those are what comes to mind.
Your lists will, of course, be different.
To make things a little different — and potentially easier — you can consider your “Current Self” and “Younger Self” to be different people.
Sometimes, taking this perspective makes it easier to discern who you were and what you really enjoyed, without judgment, embarrassment, or fear.
Bringing Your Passions Into The Present
Right after you answer the two questions outlined earlier, you must make a new list.
A list of your current passions/interests.
While writing this list, try to be specific.
Just to give you an example, here is my list:
• Writing Practical, Actionable Essays — Such As This One
• Reading Practical Nonfiction Books That Offer Processes For Creating Change
• Watching Films And Taking Notes On Them
• Producing Poetic, Strange, Otherworldly Stories
• Going On Long Walks To New Places
• Visiting/Living In Other Countries/Learning About Other Countries
• Reading Mysteries & Noir Books And Comic Books
• Conducting Experiments That Involve Metaphysical Concepts/Practices
• Listening To Sad, Melancholic Music And Upbeat, Energetic Music
• Reading Fantasy & Science-Fiction Rich With Unique, Mind-Expanding Concepts
• Combining Concepts And Ideas Together, To See What Comes Forth
Each one of these is a current favorite mine and, as such, there’s a lot we can do with them.
The same is true of your list.
With your new list on-hand, and the two previous lists ready to go, begin to combine your passions and interests with your current passions and interests.
You can take this in any direction you want.
The results may seem silly or strange. But, that’s okay.
Your goal is to, quite simply, just see what happens.
To give you an example, we can combine my passion for “Swimming” with my passion for “Writing Practical, Actionable Essays” and write practical essays about swimming.
No, this isn’t something that compels me. But, it’s an example of what can arise.
While working with this process, try to produce at least ten combinations.
Some of them will be less-than-compelling. But others may be very compelling.
A New Day
Right after you complete the processes outlined above, you must set a goal.
No, not a goal.
A theme.
A simple theme that is, in essence, a daily task.
Your daily task is to engage with one of the new passions you’ve clarified every single day.
Just a few minutes is good enough. But, if you can, try your new passion for a little longer.
And, if you don’t like it, then move on.
To go along with that, you should also give yourself some time to return to your old passions.
You may not find anything within them. But, you may find something very, very special.
Something you never would have imagined.
Something that unlocks a wealth of new, absolutely magical, possibilities.
You won’t know — and you can’t know — unless you give yourself some time to enjoy your passions.
So, please, do that.
Just set aside some time today or tomorrow — and for a few days after that, at least — to engage with your passions.
If your experience is anything like mine, the results will be magical.
Conclusion
Your passions and interests contain the seeds of who you are and who you can be.
Right on the edges of this past and future, though, is something else: fun.
Or, perhaps, joy, pleasure, excitement, enthusiasm, fulfillment, satisfaction.
You can experience all of these, and so much more, by engaging with your passions.
For this reason, my hope is that you play with the processes outlined in this essay and, then, engage with what you find.
No matter what, though, thank you so much for reading and, as always, if you wish to reach me you can do so at “maxwellcakin@gmail.com.”
Best wishes, and have a lovely day!
