All We Need Is… Passion
“Let the world wash over me. Expression. Keep me up, can’t go to sleep. Intention. Make that light shine forever” - RAC & Louis the Child
TLDR
Passion is a fluid concept that involves engaging deeply in an activity that is aligned with our values and towards an impactful purpose, and allows us to take an enthusiastic & adaptable perspective on our lives. Below are steps you can take to reinvigorate, realign, or rediscover your passions.
Introduction
“What are you passionate about?” wasn’t a difficult or stressful question for me… until my adult life.
Throughout my own schooling, I loved to learn and help others learn. I followed this curiosity through college & into my professional life as I entered the purpose-filled field of K-12 education. And then, I burned out.
I defined myself by my passion. It was always the feedback I received from teachers, managers, & professors - that my passion was going to carry me to the end. This validation fostered confidence and the formation of my identity. When I hit the hot ashes of burn out in this passion, it rocked my belief in myself. Who am I if I’m not helping children learn?
This article is an exploration of what passion is, what kind of impact it has on our lives, and how to rediscover & recommit to our passions.
What Is Passion? The Historical Perspective
The Merriam Webster definition is “a strong liking or desire for some activity, object, or concept; an object of desire or deep interest”. This definition has changed over time.
The Latin root of ‘passion’ is patior (v) - to suffer, endure, resign. originally coined to describe the suffering of Christ on the cross.
In Middle English, it took on 2 meanings:
Physical suffering - ailment, disease, affliction
Intense or vehement emotion or desire, often used with negative controlling feelings.
In the 1970’s & 80’s, psychologists Edward Deci and Richard Ryan developed the theory of human motivation, Self-Determination Theory. They defined passion as “a strong inclination towards an activity that people like, find important, and in which they invest time and energy”.
They considered activities completed through intrinsic motivation and as self-defining, such that it becomes a central feature in one’s identity (ex. Artist, basketball player, gamer). These activities provide us with a sense of self-efficacy and achievement of our goals. A consequence of these activities is a state of flow. Pursuit of these activities are all-consuming; a balance between Obsessive Passion and Harmonious Passion. For these purposes, we’re going to focus on Harmonious Passion.
Passion & Purpose, Values, Flow State.
So what is the difference between passion, purpose, values, and what is flow state? How do all these concepts connect?
Values: the compass
The set of guiding principles and beliefs that differentiate ‘good’ and ‘bad’.
The regard that something is held to deserve; the importance, worth, or usefulness of something.
Purpose: the mission
The reason for which something is done, created, or for which something exists.
Passion can fuel your purpose, purpose gives meaning to your passions.
Flow State: the focused balance between challenge and skill level during a task
Optimal experience arising from intense involvement in an enjoyable activity.
Loss of self-consciousness and temporal awareness. Sense of total control, effortlessness, and complete concentration on the immediate moment.
Intrinsic motivation
The drive to engage in an activity because it is inherently interesting, enjoyable, or satisfying, rather than for external rewards or pressures.
Associated with activity in dopaminergic systems and large-scale neural networks involved in salience detection, attentional control, and self-referential cognition.
To sum it up…
Values define our internal compass for which actions are enjoyable and are important to us. Engaging in activities out of internal desire and enjoyment increases our ability to enter a state of flow. Engaging in activities we have chosen to participate in is associated with increased psychological adjustment (enjoying life). Passion facilitates flow by driving focus, attention, and persisting through challenge. None of these concepts lead to complete ease in the task, however, it does make challenges easier to endure, enhancing our resilience.
So, how does burn out work?
There are several ways burnout can be present when engaging in passionate activities:
Overworking / Obsessive Passion: Inability to disengage from the activity and ignoring other needs or other important life aspects. Leads to increased personal risk, and decrease of self-care.
Imbalance of Skills & Challenge: Flow relies on having a suitable challenge for the skills available, imbalance can lead to increased stress or boredom.
Overcommitment: Extending oneself too much in activities, especially those with a strong sense of purpose.
Emotional Exhaustion: Intense emotional over-investment due to prolonged stress or emotional strain.
A passion activity is one that we enjoy, is important to our lives, moderately challenges us, and allows us to make an impact on ourselves and others. Striving for flexible balance with other values & aspects, rather than rigid persistence, prevents burnout.
So how do we do this in our own lives?
Break It Down Now, Y’all!
Self Determination Theory identifies these three steps as to incorporating more passion into our lives.
Activity selection
Explore activities you might like! Let your own curiosity guide you. Take classes, participate in workshops, go to meetups, talk to people who do different things.
What did you have the most fun with? Why? What lights you up, and what doesn't?
Activity valuation
The importance of this activity to you. Reflect on the value that this activity brings into your life.
Have you always wanted to learn to draw? Did you love photography when you were growing up? Did you once see yourself as a volleyball player?
Why does this matter to you? What does it add to your life?
Internalization of the activity as a representation of your identity
Staying consistent with the activity will allow it to embed itself as a part of your identity and lifestyle.
Your environment should be reflective of choice - you are the one that chooses the activity and what it means to you.
Another way to think about this is by reflecting and setting small goals:
Values Reflection - what matters to me in my life?
What are activities that bring me joy & fulfillment?
What is involved in this activity? Do I have materials needed? Do I have a space to do this in?
If not, what is available in my community? Are there classes, workshops, or people I know who do this activity?
Start small. Aim for consistency.
How much time is reasonable for me to commit right now? What does that look like over a day, a week, or a month?
Who might keep me accountable towards these goals? Is there a group that I’d be interested in trying out? Is there anyone in my life who has similar interests in this activity?
Continue to iterate, reflect, experiment, explore.
Is there another medium or way of doing this activity that I want to try?
Is there a different balance between passions, self care, relationships, and work to explore?
Are there challenges coming up I didn’t anticipate? What can I do about these? Who can I talk to about these? Are there resources out there that can help?
It’s a journey, not a marathon.
It’s about building a lifestyle, not about specific or instant results.
Why Does This Matter?
Passion builds our ability to fully engage in the present moment. It increases our enjoyment of life, stress tolerance, persistence towards a goal, emotional wellbeing, and allows us to understand what we care about. Pursuing passion activities also pushes us towards higher levels of purpose, self-awareness, creativity, and emotional regulation.
Humans learn better by doing something we like because it allows our brains to feel safe. Psychological safety creates space for deeper neurological connections to our daily lives. This gives us motivation to master skills and engage with sustained focus and learning.
Outside of the neurological impacts, we are able to shift identity formation from external to internal - “I am a writer because I love to write in my free time” vs “I am a writer because it’s part of my job”. Having an internal identity formation that takes into account our multifaceted identity helps us understand our own values, building our own autonomy, individuality, and competence.
Finally, passion activities give us a way to connect with other people and build connections based on similar values. This reinforces and grows a beneficial feedback cycle.
Overall, pursuing passions involves engaging deeply in an activity, aligned with our values and towards an impactful purpose, and allows us to take an enthusiastic & adaptable perspective on our lives.
I hope this can be a resource to others (and to myself) to understand how we might be feeling - whether trying to make a decision about next steps academically / professionally, trying to prevent or recover from burnout, or redesign our life.
Extremely well written, my friend!