Why Passion is Important

So, I imagine you’ve heard the phrase, “Do what you love, love what you do.” Unfortunately, a lot of us work at jobs we don’t love. If you truly love what you do for a living, count yourself lucky. For the rest, finding a passion is crucially important. Note: Having a passion outside of work is important for everyone, even if work is your true passion. One can always be downsized or outright fired, so it’s key to have something that is important to you aside from work. Jobs come and go; passions have a much longer shelf life.

You ask, " Why is passion so important?” Having a passion gives you a reason to live, to keep going through the muck that is mental illness. And who do you suppose hates you having a passion most? Yep, that would be the Beast that is suicidality. The Beast hopes hard that you have no direction in life. So, what if you say, “That’s me – I lack direction. I don’t have any passions.”

Admittedly, if you know what your passion is, you’re a step ahead. (If you don’t know just yet, don’t lose faith – I’ll address that in a little bit.) Take me, for example. I have loved animals since I was a little girl. I took my very first riding lesson at the age of seven; I got my first dog at the age of eight. I love my three Labrador retrievers more than life itself, but if I had to answer the question as to what I am most passionate about, it would have to be riding, jumping, and showing my horse.

Why do I consider horses to be my passion? Turns out, they are the one thing I can’t live without. I’ve owned horses for forty consecutive years. I have one retired horse living his best retired life, and I have a mare whom I campaign at shows near and far. I LOVE riding. It gives me joy and a sense of accomplishment.

To those who know nothing about horses, the partnership you forge with them is sublime – it is an incredible feeling to canter around a course of jumps in synch with a 1,200-pound animal with a mind of its own. That kind of relationship is incredibly special. Horses are what get me out of bed in the morning. They are why I work hard at managing my mental illness. Every down day, every day in the hospital (while needed) is a day I am without my beloved Queenie girl.

Keeping my passion for all things equine alive and well is how I get through the darkest of days. Admittedly, cuddling with my dogs is also very helpful (and something I love), but with Queenie, I am forward-thinking. I have goals I want to achieve, first at home, and then in the show ring. I have a calendar of competitions I want to attend this year and what I want to achieve at each one.

I always preferred riding to the team sports I played at school. I’ve heard people say over and over that riding is an individual sport. For a long time, I took that at face value. At some point, I realized that’s pure fallacy: riding a horse is the ultimate team sport. Communicating with a nonverbal partner requires both mental skills and command of your physical aids so you don’t give mixed or wrong messages.

So, I promised I’d address not having a passion. First, I have some doubts that you are truly passion-free. Maybe your passion is hiding – ask yourself, what did your inner child love to do growing up? Was it riding your bike around the neighborhood? If so, why not go to a local bike store and see if they sponsor rides in your area? Like-minded people you can meet, friends you can make. Maybe you found your passion in undergrad, tutoring underprivileged kids. Try calling schools or your library to find volunteering opportunities. If you dig deep, you may find that there really is something you love out there. You even just might surprise yourself.

If you hate your job and it leaves you without the time or the energy to pursue/discover your passion(s), I would gently suggest you invest in yourself: maybe take a career aptitude test to see where your true interests lie. You might be surprised by the results. I venture to guess it most likely won’t be the same career that you have now – and if it is, perhaps there is another firm with a better work/life balance, where boundaries are respected, and you don’t feel continually disrespected and undervalued. I urge you to take the time to discover what makes you feel joy. One suggestion I have is to see if there is a volunteer clearinghouse in your area. There, you can explore all sorts of volunteer opportunities. (A Google search is also a useful tool, but I think the people who populate the volunteer information centers are very knowledgeable and helpful.)

If you’re lucky, you do what you love and love what you do. Even then, I maintain that it’s crucial to have personal (non-work) passion(s). We all need something we love, something that makes us feel pride and joy. Something that makes us get out of bed in the morning. Something that makes us smile. Something that makes us feel alive. If you think finding your passion is unthinkable or impossible, just think of how much easier it would be to fight the Beast when you have a purpose, when you have something to live for.