PASSION IN THE WORKPLACE? (It’s Not What You Think!)

As a wise old sage once told me, “If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.”

Makes incredible sense, yes?

But that said, how does one attain such a lofty goal?

To me the answer is simple … discover or decide what you truly love to do, and make it your mission to do just that.

OK … it may not really be that simple … after all, there are so few professional positions that require you to recline in a barcalounger with a beer in one hand and a remote in the other, but if you follow your heart down a professional path, you just might find yourself looking as forward to Mondays as you do to Friday nights.

Far too often when approaching a career change, we ask ourselves, “What’s out there?”  Other questions might be “What am I good at?  Where do I belong?  Or, For what am I qualified?” … all valid questions.

But perhaps the most important question to ask is quite simply:  “What makes me happy?”  By posing that basic query, you can now embark on your journey.

For me, sports and communication were dual passions.  I love the inner workings and the scenes behind-the-scenes at a stadium, performance hall or arena.  I also love telling stories, impacting behavioral change and making a difference … and I knew all that before entering college.  So when the time came time to pursue my career, my path was clear – finding a way to mix sports and entertainment with public relations, advertising, promotions and marketing.

And I did just that … first by hustling, interning and participating in any and every sports journalism position I could find before landing my first job with a sports-oriented PR agency.  Three years later, I was off on my own, doing it under my own shingle.

But I discovered that pursuing a career I loved was anything but a bed-of-roses guarantee.  For starters, there were only so many sports and entertainment clients available, so we branched away from what we identified as our core mission and started handling restaurants, consumer shows, business service accounts, real estate and non-profits.  Toss into the mix personnel issues, financial matters, contract negotiations, client demands and uncontrollable influences, and it became quickly evident that even the best of vocations could become … well … simply a job. 

But so much about life and success is attitude … and by adopting the philosophy that our mainstream clients and business administration practices were just as important as the projects we loved, we fostered an environment of across-the-board success and accomplishment.  Before too long, that approach became mantra … and shortly thereafter, we truly started to practice what we preached.

So while I still love those sports and entertainment clients – and while such events and projects continue to fuel my passion -- it is with equal enthusiasm and devotion that I approach every project, every client and each administrative responsibility. 

To me, that’s not a job … and it’s not a chore … its actually fun …

And that makes it really easy to get up for work every morning …