The whole idea that we have innate passions that can be unearthed by simply looking inward is flawed. Sure, there are examples of people who found their passion or purpose early, but 1) the discovery happened by getting out there and trying stuff, and 2) a fair amount of luck plays into when someone gets exposure to what ends up being a passion/purpose. The trick is to try a ton of $h!t and embrace being terrible for a while. The interest won't be strong enough in most things to push past the "I'm terrible at this" stage, but every once in a while it will be, and that's where the magic happens. I think I've heard Josh Waitzkin talk about how passion comes much later after you've already worked at something for a long time, once proficiency is starting to compound. Basically the opposite of how we're told it works.
Love the quadrant, by the way. I'm working on a piece right now about trade-offs so it really landed.
Lot of wisdom in that comment. I think you're right in terms of hoping for passion to land, vs building toward it. And that sometimes it takes awhile, until you're really into something for you to grasp the depth.
Hey Rick, I appreciate the nuanced analysis here. There are no easy answers in the "fulfillment" journey and it looks different for everyone, as it can depend on life stage, financial resources, drive, ability, luck, and maybe 100 other factors unique to the individual. The older I get, the fuzzier the answers seem.
Haha I agree! You and I both hate the simplified, dumbed down versions.
We're better off accepting the trade-offs and general messiness of it all, then trying to make the best choice we can based on what we know and understand (not some abstract foreign concepts).
The whole idea that we have innate passions that can be unearthed by simply looking inward is flawed. Sure, there are examples of people who found their passion or purpose early, but 1) the discovery happened by getting out there and trying stuff, and 2) a fair amount of luck plays into when someone gets exposure to what ends up being a passion/purpose. The trick is to try a ton of $h!t and embrace being terrible for a while. The interest won't be strong enough in most things to push past the "I'm terrible at this" stage, but every once in a while it will be, and that's where the magic happens. I think I've heard Josh Waitzkin talk about how passion comes much later after you've already worked at something for a long time, once proficiency is starting to compound. Basically the opposite of how we're told it works.
Love the quadrant, by the way. I'm working on a piece right now about trade-offs so it really landed.
Lot of wisdom in that comment. I think you're right in terms of hoping for passion to land, vs building toward it. And that sometimes it takes awhile, until you're really into something for you to grasp the depth.
I'll check out your piece when it lands!
My “variation on the Ikigai theme”: love what you do and do it well, and your life will be alright.
Hey Rick, I appreciate the nuanced analysis here. There are no easy answers in the "fulfillment" journey and it looks different for everyone, as it can depend on life stage, financial resources, drive, ability, luck, and maybe 100 other factors unique to the individual. The older I get, the fuzzier the answers seem.
Haha I agree! You and I both hate the simplified, dumbed down versions.
We're better off accepting the trade-offs and general messiness of it all, then trying to make the best choice we can based on what we know and understand (not some abstract foreign concepts).