Res, this is a neat idea! what great stories I'm reading....
isn't it interesting that many people first think of their day jobs when you ask this kind of question? I think getting food on the table isn't necessarily the same thing as "your passion", although it can be. (sometimes nobody will pay for your passion, so you do what you can)
That said, I'm working at something I always dreamed of doing, and have been happily doing so for almost a decade. How did I get there? being flexible and willing to change. taking risks. being willing to do something new. being willing to do something I majorly disliked (but didn't out-and-out *hate*) for a while because it got me the chance to do something else I loved. saying "what the heck?" and putting in a resume when a friend told me about a place where "you'd be perfect for the job, but some of the other people who work there are really unpleasant and I don't know if you'd like it" (I adore the job, and the unpleasant people were perfectly civil to *me* and left soon afterwards anyway) ....hmmm...I think I've made most of my life decisions that have been most rewarding and valuable by saying "what the heck?" and just trying something....
other things I've learned: --if you can't do exactly what you want right away, why not try to do as much of it as you can now, even if it's a little bit? that way you don't get stuck waiting for "the perfect opportunity" --always ask for what you want. the worst they can say is "no" (and you've already said that to yourself by not asking...) --there is no such thing as "no" -- there is "not now", "not under these circumstances", "not this way", "not with you", and "not unless X"....if you change the parameters, you may be able to change the answer from "no".... --more money does not always equal a better situation. the intangibles matter --everything changes. Like other folks said, what may be your passion today may not be your passion ten years from now.
hmmm....you said you wanted to know how other people follow their passions & I haven't been very personal. okay, I got into dog training because the Spouse & I promised ourselves a dog as soon as we moved to a house with a yard. a week after the move, we went down to the local SPCA and picked up a little mutt who became the apple of our eyes. We saw a notice in the paper for a local "doggie festival" (an "in the park" event for people & their dogs), said "what the heck?" and decided to take our baby. There, we saw an obedience demo put on by the local dog club. We ended up joining the club, taking a class, and then, because it looked fun, volunteering to help when the instructors taught classes. We made a lot of friends. I got into reading and email lists about dog behavior, went to bunches of seminars, joined accreditation programs, volunteered to assist teaching bunches of more classes, and eventually taught some classes of my own. I've made friends all over the country, had scads of adventures, and changed a lot of lives for the better, one doggie and its family at a time. (Our little mutt-princess? We got into pet therapy with her and visited nursing homes and disabled children's facilities and got to watch her bring joy and happiness to tons of people, all by wagging her tail a whole lot.) Have I made money at this? Nah! But my heart's been happy, my life has been full of dogs, and I still have students who email me their Santa Paws photos.
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isn't it interesting that many people first think of their day jobs when you ask this kind of question? I think getting food on the table isn't necessarily the same thing as "your passion", although it can be. (sometimes nobody will pay for your passion, so you do what you can)
That said, I'm working at something I always dreamed of doing, and have been happily doing so for almost a decade. How did I get there? being flexible and willing to change. taking risks. being willing to do something new. being willing to do something I majorly disliked (but didn't out-and-out *hate*) for a while because it got me the chance to do something else I loved. saying "what the heck?" and putting in a resume when a friend told me about a place where "you'd be perfect for the job, but some of the other people who work there are really unpleasant and I don't know if you'd like it" (I adore the job, and the unpleasant people were perfectly civil to *me* and left soon afterwards anyway) ....hmmm...I think I've made most of my life decisions that have been most rewarding and valuable by saying "what the heck?" and just trying something....
other things I've learned:
--if you can't do exactly what you want right away, why not try to do as much of it as you can now, even if it's a little bit? that way you don't get stuck waiting for "the perfect opportunity"
--always ask for what you want. the worst they can say is "no" (and you've already said that to yourself by not asking...)
--there is no such thing as "no" -- there is "not now", "not under these circumstances", "not this way", "not with you", and "not unless X"....if you change the parameters, you may be able to change the answer from "no"....
--more money does not always equal a better situation. the intangibles matter
--everything changes. Like other folks said, what may be your passion today may not be your passion ten years from now.
hmmm....you said you wanted to know how other people follow their passions & I haven't been very personal. okay, I got into dog training because the Spouse & I promised ourselves a dog as soon as we moved to a house with a yard. a week after the move, we went down to the local SPCA and picked up a little mutt who became the apple of our eyes. We saw a notice in the paper for a local "doggie festival" (an "in the park" event for people & their dogs), said "what the heck?" and decided to take our baby. There, we saw an obedience demo put on by the local dog club. We ended up joining the club, taking a class, and then, because it looked fun, volunteering to help when the instructors taught classes. We made a lot of friends. I got into reading and email lists about dog behavior, went to bunches of seminars, joined accreditation programs, volunteered to assist teaching bunches of more classes, and eventually taught some classes of my own. I've made friends all over the country, had scads of adventures, and changed a lot of lives for the better, one doggie and its family at a time. (Our little mutt-princess? We got into pet therapy with her and visited nursing homes and disabled children's facilities and got to watch her bring joy and happiness to tons of people, all by wagging her tail a whole lot.) Have I made money at this? Nah! But my heart's been happy, my life has been full of dogs, and I still have students who email me their Santa Paws photos.
what's your passion??