I spoke to a sold-out crowd and got a standing ovation here at the AWAI convention in DelRay Beach, Florida.
My message was about following your passion. It was well received but more than a few people came up to me later and asked the same question:
“What if I don’t know my passion?”
I’ve heard it before, of course. I usually tell people what self-help legend Dr. Robert Anthony (author of Beyond Positive Thinking) told me he says when he gets the same question:
“You’re lying,” he says. “You know what you want to do. You’re just afraid to admit it.”
Most of us don’t admit our passion because then we have to take responsibility for not pursuing it.
Being ruthlessly honest with yourself can help uncover your passion.
But what about those people who really don’t seem to know what they love to do?
How do you help them discover their passion?
I often suggest they pretend they inherited a great deal of money or won the lotto.
After you go on a spending spree, buy toys and cars, and travel around the world, what will you do?
Your answer is a clue to your passion.
I told this to one man at the conference while famous copywriter Bob Bly (author of over 70 books and a long time mentor to me) stood beside us and overheard the whole conversation.
The man said he loved gardening but didn’t see how he could make it a “profitable passion.”
I pointed out that he probably knows things about gardening that other gardeners didn’t know; that if he created a product for them, he would make money from what he loves to do.
The man dismissed the idea, saying he didn’t know more than other gardeners.
Bob Bly jumped in, saying he probably knew more than other new gardeners, and that they are his market.
“Forget trying to reach the veteran gardeners,” Bob explained. “That’s not your market. Go after the newbie gardeners.”
This is the same approach Pat O’Bryan has taken.
As he learns marketing, he turns and teaches it to the newbies behind him in class. He’s making money from his passion.
Anyone can do this.
Even you.
You may need some coaching.
You may need a class on the subject: www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=1638181
You may need to attend a live event like Pat’s next Un-Seminar www.patobryan.com/unseminar4.htm?a_aid=16d36c70&a_bid=7f41a5e1
Or, maybe all you need is this blog post.
Ao Akua,
Joe
www.mrfire.com
PS — What would you do if money wasn’t a concern at all? (Be honest.)
31 Comments
Dr. Joe – I love you. Thanks for being you.
A new fan.
😉
I am still searching for real passion.. and i think some people do.. i love to do many things.. fo instance.. when i turned 50 i wanted something different, not realizing i have done this all my life.. i have been a hairstylist for 36 years and love my little clients.. they have been with me forever.. but unfortunately they are dying .. to be with their creator.. i don’t begrudge them but it is not helping my bankbook.
soooo. i went to school for hypnotherapy..
i have always been a student of the mind.. and i feel very passionate about it.
so i have been pursueing that .. doing free seminars.. but not making enough money at it.. so i have been thinking amoung other ways and i love subliminals.. so this is my next project.. cd’s.. does everyone go in circles until they actually hve the nitch?
Dr. Joe
Thanks for the clarification about my passion. Saying that after the cars,toys and travel from inheriting money to ask myself “What then” made the light bulb come on for me ! Thank-you!!!
Scott
Thanks Joe for writing about this. This is the issue most of my clients have most trouble with.
I really love what Neale Donald Walsh says in The Secret: your purpose is what you say it is. But that leads many people to the quandry of whether or how whatever that is could be profitable. And you answer that question very nicely here.
Thanks again for following YOUR passion!
Frank Butterfield
Hi, Joe.
Thanks for the information on this. I speak very often with people on this subject. As you mentioned, they are concerned on showing their true passion in life….concerned and shy because they are always thinking on what others would say about it….
Best regards from Mexico!
My passion is to raise all peoples conciousness to the level where our ability to connect to the universal belt of energy and knowledge but as of yet have not reached it myself. Any comments?
Im reading a book called a “Grass grows of its own accord” its a collection of essays by Osho. He says “when everything is said and done there is nothing, no one its pure vaccum” . I don’t know why Im posting this Its not ‘me’ posting it. Posting is happening but there is no one here posting it . Dear visitors If you understand the previous sentence you have attained realisation.
Dear Joe,
I feel much blessed to know that my passion is editing and proofreading.
So my compulsive, passionate side is nudging me to tell you that the Delray in Delray Beach, Florida has a small r.
In awe of your amazing energy,
Brenda near Delray Beach
One of my passions is visual art, there are a lot of wonderful artists out there. So how I applied this passion to creating income is through digital photography. I’m a “digital inventory” photographer, working with an antique and collectables appraiser. I get to photograph amazing objects people have acquired in a lifetime — and we get to record the description and bits of its history, along with its insurance value in in an electronic document that when printed in hard copy is an attractive and informative document. It becomes part of a person’s legacy. I love working with the people and recording that which has given them a lifetime of passion, meaning, and joy. This is the upside.
The challenge is that antiques and collectables are a moving target. Most newbies seem more interested in getting their future antiques from Ikea, and things with facinating stories and patina are simply falling by the wayside (and into landfills). Homeless; their stories lost with every impersonal estate sale.
I recognize there is a potential for creative application here, but be darned if I can see it.
Dear Joe,
I have been getting in touch with my intuition and lo and behold this post answered my question!! Thank you for being. I appreciate you and send you well-being, hugs too!
Julia in KC
Joe,
Aymee here again…You never cease to amaze me with your timing…!
Last year I sold a VERY profitable business for peanuts because I KNEW I had to follow my PASSION…. Everything was going down the drain and I just KNEW the business I was in was all wrong for me.
My PASSION is helping people…. I LOVE people! There is NOTHING in this world that gives me greater satisfaction than to see a person’s face light up when they realize they are not powerless, that they are worthy and they can actually do have the choice to change a bad situation.It has been that way for as long as I can remember. By showing them the beauty within, I learn and heal myself as well.
This is the thing…
I have always KNOWN that the KEY to my overall success in life, lie in not turning away those who cannot normally afford to shell out an enormous amount of cash for the kind of one-on-one healing I specialize in. I cannot explain it…..
It has been my CLEAR INTENTION from the very begining that my pro bono clients offer compensation for my services by paying it forward, in whichever way they feel is acceptable. I trust that they will do the right thing whether it is a random act of kindness, volunteering for a charity, helping a neighbor… or whatever they feel in their hearts…I also ask that they, in turn, ask the person they helped to do the same and so on…
A few of my friends think I am naive, or unwise, however, I KNOW it is the right thing for me…. I am CERTAIN of it…. Many have joked and call me Mother Teresa or Gandhi…
Now this is the thing… Unlike Gandhi and Mother Teresa, that ABANDONED material riches… I LOVE my swimming pool and nice home… And I KNOW I deserve to live a wonderful life full of both spiritual and material abundance… It is ALSO my clear intention to the UNIVERSE that I want to grow financially.
I LOVE my 645…And I am certain that part of the reason I was able to manifest it is that I am so willing to give freely… I truly feel deserving of all the beautiful things I love…. I appreciate them and KNOW there is nothing wrong with having enough abundance to do anything I want, when I want and to share my abundance with my friends, family and the WORLD.
I own another business that I love as well, and I am constantly on the lookout for whatever oportunities are sent my way, however right when it seems that things are starting to move financially… Something happens and I have to start from square one again ….
I am clear about WHAT I want…However; there is something going on that I just cannot see… HELP! I have been cleaning, cleaning, cleaning and still cannot see!
What can I ask myself Joe? What would you do? Can you offer me a morsel of advice?
As always my deepest gratitude for your comments and insight…
Blessings, Love, Light, and LOADS and LOADS of continued success!
Aymee
Hi Joe,
I have been following you around… ( The Secret movie, attractor factor, Hypnotic Marketing books and your Mr. Fire.com website) I finally feel that I’ve tapped into the highest energy current there is out there. I”m in the flow…
My story is that I’ve come from working a dead end job to following my heart (out on a limb) to finally receiving my certification as a clinical hypnotherapist specializing in past life regression and life between life soul regression. I love taking people through the veil of forgetfulness to discovering their true soul essance and showing them how to open a dialog with their truest guidance. Thank you for offering the marketing tools and encouragement to put myself out there in the world with integrity. It has been a complete life change for me and I also would like to share that my husband left a job of 30 years to follow his true passion. He loves to travel and golf. His brother in law called one day with a wonderful opportunity to own his own online travel biz. check it out at http://www.ZacaSunriseVacations.com Its a miracle! We can now not only help make others dreams come true but we are being paid to travel the world at the same time. What could be more wonderful than that? Thank you Joe
Linda & Jay
Hello Joe! Well here I am again, the struggling author. Have you checked out my site or my book? I am beginning to write a self help series of books now, based on the Kybaloin and other writings like the Science of Getting Rich. Not near as deep as to be called Metaphical but more to give some perspective to the reader. I am going to take the applications of these works and place them in a daily routine and I am looking for help to put it together. The Hermetic Teachings might be a bit too deep for the masses but the practical knowledge contained is priceless. I have a few ideas I would like to correspond with you on.
My first book, That Golden Prairie Whale, is a dud and is doing poorly on Amazon or any other on line book seller so this is why I ask if you have checked it out. I have had very limited success at the onset of its launch but now nothing more than a fizzle. I explore every e-mail you send to me so I thought you might return the favor. All I need is a mention from you and I know it will pick up in sales a lot. Thanks anyway. Keep up the great work. I look forward to your blogs. You seem to be having fun and that’s what it is really about.
Let me know if you might be interested in something like this so we might explore it further.
My greatest passion is encouraging others to see themselves and everyone else as God sees us. To know that any fear, doubt, judgement of any kind…..seperates us from source (God). The truth is…..we are already completely connected to source. It is just up to us to clear the junk and keep the line clear. Just like a telephone….sometimes tree branches can cause static on the line……sometimes a transformer can blow and knock out the ability to access the connection for awhile. Just like judgement or fear can cause static in our connection to God……If we pay attention and clear/release/clean the garbage in the way…we won’t end up with a blown transformer…(cancer, heart attack, etc.) And, just as we are totally connected to God…..we really are connected to each other as well….we really are ALL ONE!
Whenever we feel, think or believe something negative about someone else…it is never about them, but ALWAYS about us. Always look within for your answers…as you let go of your own blocks, you will no longer attract people and situations into your life designed for that very purpose….to get you to look at yourself! Pretty cool, really….we really are 100% totally responsible for absolutely every result in our lives…..financial, spiritual, health, relationships….. I guess thats the hard part for BLAMERS……hard to want to believe that it all comes back to US!
Peace,
Carol
Hey Joe!
Great article. I actually wrote a very similar article about discovering your passions and aligning yourself with them in a recent post on my blog. My experience in this area is that finding and emphasizing your passions goes a long way in bringing the results you desire.
Two years ago I started focusing on my writing as a Wal-Mart employee working in receiving. Today I am looking at my first booking being published in 2008.
Dear Joe, I too finally stopped kidding myself about one of the most impractical of all possible passions — being a soprano. Of course, it helps that I now have a USP, so I’m no longer just another wanna-be, waiting for somebody to “throw me a bone.” I’m now composing a rock opera, whith a role for me that uses all the stuff I do best. But it’s not really about me — it’s about the story, one of the most compelling of all stories from Greek mythology, updated to the sexy Edwardian era. NOW my work is finally catching on! Thanks for writing this, Joe.
You always pop up when i meet a block. working on it. I quit my job back in july this year. It was making me physically and mentally unwell. I started cleansing and as i had questions of what i should be doing next. Answers came in unexpected ways. It’s been like an amazing joy ride. I started meditating, No idea of what true meditation could ,would and is still doing. During this time I had my adult/children begin meditating. The flood gates opened up, its all good. I’ve asways believed in miracles. They’re happening before my eyes. my son has opened up and is now being taken to sacred places to pray, oh yeah we’re blackfeet . His grandmother is his teacher from the other side. Many peoople come through him to say hi. I taught him to use the cleansing prayer espically before he leaves home . Thank you Dr. for your prayer. I guess by now you know i can’t spell his name, but he’s amazing. My daughter’s journey is just as exciting and as i found out they’re personal and just as unique and beautiful as we are , so journey on everyone , it’s all good. we’re grateful for all we have , thankful to our creator and our ancestors. My son has cp and they’re both labeled learning disabled, but weve never accepted that label, So…her I am trying to figure out my passion. I would love to help people to start on their inner journey , so they can see the beauty of themselves and to fall in love with themselves . THANK U FOR KICK STARTING ME. Now i’m searching for the how and still have a monatary income. BLESS U AND CARRY ON
oH YEAH peace out grammer patrol i love u
Hi Joe,
Finding my passion has never been my dilemma. From the moment that I learned about the Law of Attraction and how it worked, and discovered that there were hundreds of teachers who were teaching and writing abouut manifesting the life that you want (and this was way before The Secret came out), I knew that I wanted to share this with others. So, finding my passion is not the challenge for me. My challenge is having really great ideas that I am extremely passionate about and not knowing how to implement them without large amounts of start up revenue. I have been sitting on an idea for three years now that I just know will be huge in how it will help further mainstream the idea of the law of attraction but raising the revenue to create the business that I have in my dream and my vision are another matter entirely. Any suggestions?
Joe, what I need is your help. I love public relations, and I started a blog, http://www.yourprguy.com not too long ago. Can you take a look at it and give me a few suggestions on how to improve.
And, what suggestions do you have for a budding PR pro?
Au Akoa
Rodg
Great.
I asked the question. The answer was unexpected. It didn’t say “rock musician” (which I pursued actively during the 1980-90 period). It didn’t say horsemanship instructor (a newer passion). It didn’t say “go get your MFA and teach art” (the logical path following a BFA).
It simply said: “Write”.
Immediately thereafter, words spoken to me in passing by friends came rushing back: “You should be a writer”, said one, “because your emails are always well-crafted and fascinating to read.” “You need to write a book,” said another. One of my invitation-only blogs has readers who’ve described it as “better than Desperate Housewives/can’t wait for the next installment”. All of these comments were shrugged off by me. Yeah, right. Me. A writer. 😆
I realized that I spend the majority of my day updating my blogs with very long-winded personal explorations or writing in my journal. It became clear that what I dearly wish to do is write non-fiction books on subjects of personal, poignant, positive reflections; subjects designed to provoke thought and change people’s perspectives. Then I recognized that I tried to do this in my song lyrics during my rocker phase, and that my attraction to natural horsemanship is because it teaches a positive, progressive alternative to horse “training”. But to write a book on personal growth? Don’t I need to finish growing first? Maybe, like your friend the gardener, my books should be aimed towards the newbies as well.
So I thank you, Joe, for helping me uncover my passion. How could it have been so simple?
Write. OK, then. I will.
Joe, I think I need to “clean” on that some more. I love, I’m sorry, Please Forgive Me & Thank you.
We have a great bunch of people sharing interesting ideas.Joe, why not create a forum? just my 2 cents
Hi Joe,
Just wanted to drop a quick post.
Today I feel like a COMPLETE DORK!
Yesterday, I posted that Help Joe! Can you offer me a morsel of advice thing…I did clean!clean!clean!
And…
Today, of course…. a FABULOUS, INCREDIBLE business oportunity is shoved right in my face…..Something so incredible I almost fell off my chair… And its 100% SOLID!
I am so ASHAMED :oops:, for being so impatient, I wanted it to be a learning experience both for me, and everyone else who posts on your blog.
People, learn from my experience…Be patient with yourselves ….
I want everything NOW and it does not work that way… UNWAVERING FAITH! The Divine Architect ALWAYS delivers! … That is what comes to mind….
Thank you for allowing me to share my piece… Once more..
Hope this helps someone.
Wish you and everyone else who reads this
INFINITE….LOVE,LIGHT,HAPPINESS,PROSPERITY AND WISDOM…
Aymee
Hey there Joe! Longtime fan here…
I just wanted to post and say that I am thankful that I have been working and making a living with my passion for sometime now. Quite a few years ago, I had lost a lot of money in various, risky investments while trying to increase my personal wealth. I guess I could have just shut down and decided to mope around and think about how unfair the world was, but I decided that I should, instead, try to do something about it all. I thought if I could help just a few people each year avoid putting their hard earned money at risk, due to poor investing advice that it would really make me feel great. What started out as somewhat of an unfortunate situation helped reveal my passion to me. I really like helping other people be successful. I meet so many great people each week who are truly grateful to learn new ways to save money and still sleep at night. I can say, with conviction, prosperity always follows those with the right intentions. I am thankful for the experiences that helped me to uncover my passion many years back. Thank you for your article, Joe.
Without passion, you are no-one. If you want to succeed you have to have passion. I work with people on their careers and those who are successful are passionate about their job, role, company they work for, their dreams…. a great post. Keep them coming!
I am a musician/songwriter/performer. I am highly creative also do T-shirt designs and plan on developing new artists. I do love writing and making music. It is my true gift and passion; yet for the longest time I’d always look for money making opportunities that have nothing to do with music or art. None of my attempts have made me any money, I’ve tried Real Estate, Cosmetics, Financials and failed at all of ’em. Deals never came through. I’ve wasted so much of my time and energy on stuff I have absolutely NO passion for. I just saw the $$$ that never came. I subconsciously told myself I can’t make money with my music. I’m still working on clearing that but I do make it a point now to ONLY do things that I truly enjoy and that have to do with music.
Thanks for this awesome BLOG Joe, as always, you inspire me!
xoxoxo
~JVB
I do know about my passions. Writting books, Tv docummentaires, or shows, create new ideas, investigate and learn new things especially about humain beings infinite possibilities, and now, also being a mother. And…. I live in Portugal, I’m portuguese and a single Mom. Ten years ago I gave up all my stupid jobs with no meaning to follow a path, to discover what I really liked , met Amit Goswami and found things. Wrote a first book 2002, sold well, but not enough to live on it. My ideas for tv shows they all love it , but there’s no money in the country….So after all I have to go back to do any kind of job not my passions to support my child…Do you have any ideas ? I’ve been trying everything…Have The Secret , doing seminars etc… Now, money is running out….Do you need anyone to work with you here in this country ? Or anywhere else ? You probably will not answer, but anyway, thanks for listening. Filipa
I have known for a long time that I am passionate about writing. I have been writing since I was old enough to hold a pencii! It took awile to discover how to make a profit from my passion. About a decade ago I was able to quit my day job and become full time professional storyteller. For past few years, I have been constantly exploring creative ways to use make my passion profitable. A book you co-wrote, The 7-Day Ebook, helped me launch my latest creation: an ebook abut discovering your life purpose.
Thank you for you for your work. It continues to inspire me to make my passion profitable.