So what is my passion?

I keep talking about how I've found my passion in life and, unbeknownst to me, I've been doing it all along! But I haven't told you what it is.

Why?

Well, it's difficult to explain. My passion hasn't turned out to be so cookie-cutter. I don't mean "cookie-cutter"  in a bad way, I mean it just wasn't so clear. Like knitting, or rebuilding muscle cars, or cultivating mushrooms to save the world (although those all sound like fun!).

I suppose the most simple way to put it - my passion is being myself.

Let's go back to that quote that I keep mentioning and break it down:
"I've been so busy doing what I really want to do that I don't have time for what I think I want to do."

The whole time that I was searching for my passion in life, I thought it was going to be another mask I'd have to wear. Like, The Knitter or The eBay Seller or The Organizer. It's the thing I thought I'd want to do, that I needed to prepare for. I figured I'd have to be 100% proficient in whatever it was that I picked before I could make a profit.

And sure, that's how the world works, right? You go to college to become proficient in what you want to do with your life, so you can make money! I knew I didn't want to go the college route, though. It's so rigid, and I've always known passion was fiery and unpredictable; often, forcing yourself to enjoy your passion will just squelch the fire.

That's the brick wall I kept running into. How am I supposed to force myself to stick to my passion long enough to make a profit if I know that the act of forcing it will likely just make it a chore, just like any other job?

The thing is, I think... if you really want to be successful in doing what you love, you gotta have faith.

And I'm not talking about religion. I'm talking about faith in yourself. Faith that you can make it. Faith that everything will be okay. That's something I think our society is lacking in these days. Everyone is so afraid that they will fail or they won't be good enough. The thing is - all of the people who have made themselves successful - they felt that fear, too. But they didn't let fear control the decisions they made, and they didn't let fear keep them in a cubicle.

And that's what I'm striving for. My passion is all the things I've mentioned. It's being an incredible mom. It's being a magnificent partner. It's unschooling. It's simplifying. It's learning new things. Tasting new tastes. Testing new ideas. Nourishment. Taking care of myself and taking care of others. There's an endless, ever-changing list! Not just one thing.

My passion is so many things all at once. They are all me. This whole time, all I needed to do was just be myself.

How merely being myself is going to help me quit my job is something I haven't quite figured out yet! I suppose that will be my leap of faith once I've put together an adequate safety net - enough money for my family to get by for 3 months. That's about $2,500 for our family of 4. Luckily, I'm not interested in getting rich, so we don't need too much money (and we're slowly working on going moneyless).

Here are a few relevant links about doing what you want with your life:

Ash from the Middle Finger Project recently wrote about tenacity and humility and risking failure in Argentina (and all over the world):
Argentina + An 11-Year-Old Boy + Greatest Business Asset of All

Another feature I LOVE on the Middle Finger Project - Fear Exposed. This week Elisa tells us how being herself got her a Forbes.com column:
Fear, Exposed -- Featuring Elisa Doucette

Last but definitely not least, Nina Yau from Castles in The Air has overcome some fears and the comfort of "playing it safe" and is in Taiwan living her dreams! Yay, Nina! =D


Live From Taipei, Taiwan: Living Your Dreams from Nina Yau on Vimeo.