Scoffs.
That’s what you usually hear when you start talking about doing what you love. Some love the idea. A few understand it.
Hardly anyone gets it.
To some, it sounds selfish. They would rather be doing what the were told. It is more honorable. It’s how it’s supposed to work.
The people who hate it the most, aren’t doing what they love. It makes them mad. They get angry. They don’t want it to exist.
“It’s unrealistic,” they say.
But, it isn’t. It’s real.
Some know that it is out there, but they feel trapped. They are stuck. They are too far below to see the surface above.
That was me once. I was stuck. I was doubtful. I was angry. I wasn’t doing anything about it. I was doing the same thing that I always did, and it wasn’t helping.
The first lesson in learning to do what you love is to know what you love. What makes you crazy? What makes you stay up way past your bedtime? What do you dream about while your boss drones on?
For some, they are already doing it, but they’ve lost the passion.
For others, they are trapped in a mirage. Stuck. Frustrated.
Doing what you love isn’t easy. It is hard. You are going to have to stay up late. You are going to have to feel uncomfortable. And, more than anything else, you are going to have to learn that doing what you love has nothing to do with anyone else.
It is up to you.
If you are still scoffing, you may not be ready.
This post was originally published on Medium.com, May of 2013.