The Passion Test (part 1)

So last night, my wife had me go with her and our daughter to the local library.  I really didn’t spend too much time looking for books, but on the way out, I picked up a book called The Passion Test.  No, it’s not a book on re-igniting your marriage, or anything related to that.

It’s actually about helping you find and do in your life what you’re passionate about.  The book is interesting in that it doesn’t start with goals – it’s starts with your state of being.  In what state of being, or doing, are you in when you’re at your happiest?  The passion test starts with this premise in mind and asks you to do the same.

I’ve finished reading the first 3 chapters, and a lot of it is just plain filler.  Mostly the story of the life of one of the authors (Jane Attwood) which, quite honestly, I could do without.  I’m sure others would like it, but I’m not one of those.  Anyway, the “test” itself is intriguing, and I liked that.  I thought I’d just summarize it here, and let you try it out on yourself:

1. Think of 10 things you’d like to be doing or being right now.  No limits.  Want to be a billionaire?  Fine, write it down as, “In my ideal world, I am a billionaire.”  Just like that.  Do not shortchange yourself because you don’t think it could happen.  Write it down.
2. Do not write GOALS.  What’s the difference between a goal and a passion?  A goal is a concrete marker, or milestone.  A goal would be, “I’d like to make $1 billion” or “I’d like to achieve 10% bodyfat” (goal) vs “Being in peak physical conditioning.” (Passion)
3. Now, re-order them according to priority.  Look at the first item your wrote, and the second.  If you could only have one or the other, not both (pretend having one means not having the other, even if having one would imply you could easily have the other), which would you choose?  Take that outcome, and then moving on to the next item you listed.  So imagine you have item 1 and item 2.  Item 2 is more to you, so you take item 2 and compare it to item 3.  Still like item 2?  Move on to item 4.  Now you like item 4 better?  Keep going down the list until you’ve really thought about it and compared them all.  Once you get to the bottom, put the item you are most passionate about at the top of a new list.  Then go back to the top of the original list and start again.
4. Make sure you do this each time.  Do the comparison for each item.  Don’t assume that, “Oh that one is definitely the best on the list, I don’t need to make any comparisons.”  The author warns against this, and I can confirm you’ll be surprised at what comes out on top in some cases.  Items you thought meant less than others might actually mean more.
5. Finally, when writing your list and making your comparisons, DON’T think about what others think of your list, or what you think it should be, and don’t do this with anyone around.  Do what you think would make you happiest.  That’s it.

In part 2, I’ll share my list and show you how it started initially and how it eventually ended up.  Give it a whirl and see what you come up with.