Ever feel like you’ve hit the proverbial wall in your road to success? Do you feel lack luster in your efforts? Has your connection to your motivation weakened?
Here are some things to try to reignite your passion.
1. Sketch out a timeline. Grab a blank sheet of paper and draw out a timeline, going back about 10 years. Make sure you fill in “TODAY” in the center of the line. Next, to the left fill in the “landmarks,” including the years you began new jobs or positions or started a company. After that, fill in the times you experienced a rough patch or period of uncertainty. (Note: when I do this I include personal and professional data. Together the sum of these parts makes us who we are, so they are both relevant). Now, over the past decade, surely you have had many victories, big and small. Account for them on your timeline. (I like to list a few names that I associate with the “wins.”) Finally, fill in the goals and landmarks that are in your future. These are the things that you are working towards. This is the fun part. Go to town! When you are finished, read it, from left to right. Sometimes we can get so wrapped up in our work or “projects” that we can lose sight of why we are doing it in the first place.
2. Focus on someone else. Who do you know who needs your help and how can you help them? Chances are if you sit quietly with your eyes closed for a minute you will know who this person is. What are they working on now and could use your help? Maybe they just need to know you have their back. Not only will you be helping someone else, but there is a high probability that doing so will help to reignite your own passion. Helping someone else can give you a fresh point of view.
3. Get perspective from a stranger. This may sound surprising or even silly, but gathering input from an “expert from afar” is effective. Here’s why. Often we become sort of boxed-in or confined within the seeming comfort of our own lives and habits. This means that for the most part, most of us spend our days with the same people, talking about and listening to similar things. Getting into conversation with a complete stranger creates an opportunity to share … anything. It’s a chance to share our “greatest self” with others, meaning who we are becoming or would like to be. Now, let me clarify quickly. This does NOT mean to just make up stories and pretend you are someone you are not, never will be, or don’t even have the desire to be! Share the fullness of who you are. Share information about your passion. Share what you are working on. Share, why. When we speak freely, we often process the accompanying feelings quickly. Hearing ourselves claim our desired space or success is often enough to not only push us over the edge and reignite our passion. It can also serve to slingshot us ahead with our new “perspective.”
Are you having trouble reigniting your passion? Have you tried any of these tips? Do you have any suggestions of tactics that have worked for you? Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments.