There is a fine line between stress and passion. When it comes down to the success journey or the opportunity we have, I have found out that it really all boils down to doing things because we have to or doing them because we love to.
As I was going through my morning walk, I heard a statement on one of the motivational videos I was listening to from Simon Sinek. He summed it all up by saying, “Working hard for something we hate is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.“
Here are the definitions…. STRESS is something inflicted upon you from a condition, scenario, or person that is usually not voluntary and is considered negative. PASSION is something you have for a specific person or thing that drives you or gives you an increase in motivation or energy.
Life is filled with many challenges, difficulties, and roadblocks; if anything 2020 has certainly shown us that. Whenever we begin a new opportunity or we have something in our lives that we are passionate about, unfortunately, challenges or even day-to-day living can take away that passion and we can become stressed out.
The bottom line, being stressed out or living with a passion is a matter of choice. I’ve seen many people in life that are simply going with the flow, not having a plan, choosing to live a life with stress. Personally for myself, I have chosen to live my life with passion. That does not mean that there are not any difficulties in my life. When challenges come my way, I put everything into perspective and choose to live life with passion.
The first step is to make the decision to do something you’re passionate about. If you do that, you will find the motivation to overcome any challenge and the ability to cope with the stress involved with demanding environments or tasks.
While you are on your success journey, it is absolutely imperative that you know WHY you are doing what you are doing. It’s also important that you constantly revisit your goals. Find out what you want in life, make a plan, and get passionate about it. Create some excitement and visualize what it’s going to feel like once you attain these accomplishments. When you do that, your excitement level and motivation rises and that increases your passion.
When you have achieved your goals, make sure that you reward yourself. Celebrate your success. This is why I love the fact that with RMS and our group, we have a lot of recognition, awards, and special incentive trips where we all can celebrate our success.
Being around the right people also helps increase our passion and helps us achieve our goals. It’s important to find your support system and your source of strength. It could be a close friend, a mentor, or a family member. Doing activities, reading inspirational books, or even listening to music can reduce stress and help you build your passion.
I get excited to be around people that have a zest for life and are passionate about their goals. Make sure to surround yourself with winners; surround yourself with people who live with passion and let their passion rub off on you.
This week, start out by asking yourself “Am I living with stress or am I passionate about life?” Going forward, choose to never allow stress to defeat you. Make the decision today that challenges will not stop you and learn from all your failures. Get excited about life. Get excited about your mission and your goals, and….CHOOSE TO LIVE WITH PASSION!
RICH NORTON
Regional Sales Manager RMS
Photo by Ahmad Odeh on Unsplash
