If you’re here, I’m guessing you’re a passionate person. You probably feel strongly about fulfilling your purpose, you want to create a good life for you and your family, and you’re serious about nurturing a sustainable approach to every area of life, especially your work.
When you’re first getting started, there’s a lot of noise about your “passion” and choosing something you’re passionate about.
I don’t totally disagree with this - I certainly wouldn’t encourage you to do something you absolutely hate - but I don’t think that passion should be the first reason you do something.
Lemme ‘splain.
“Passion” is, by definition, an emotion:
According to Perplexity: “Passion is a strong and often uncontrollable emotion or inclination towards a particular person, activity, or cause. It can manifest as enthusiasm, excitement, or a deep emotional connection. Historically, the term originated from the Latin passio, meaning "suffering," but it has evolved to encompass a range of intense feelings, including love, anger, and zeal.”
Intense feelings are great! ...Every once in a while.
But trying to build a business and lifestyle around passion is like trying to drink jet fuel every morning instead of coffee.
You just simply CAN’T sustain a state of hyped up passion 24/7… and anyone who talks like you should doesn’t understand what they’re saying.
Instead of passion, think about what you believe in:
I believe 100% that a sustainable, holistic approach is the way to go. I feel very strongly about this, and love talking about it with friends and family. You might even say I am “passionate” about it.
But I don’t feel passionate about it 24/7.
In fact, this morning, I felt very un-passionate about getting up and writing on this workbook. But I did anyway. You know why, friend?
Because I have a duty to you.
I believe that my way of seeing things can help you build a life that sustains you indefinitely. If I have the ability to do that, and I am so irresponsible that I burn out sipping on the crack cocaine of “passion” and can’t buckle down to create this resource for you, I’ve failed both you AND my purpose.
Sure I’m passionate about this. But I don’t work only when I feel passionate.
I have built (and am continually building) the discipline to work consistently, regardless of how I feel in the moment.
My motivator is not passion. It is duty.
There are 5 key motivators that drive action:
Reactions (Fear, Fight or Flight)
Immediate emotional responses, often driven by fear, push people into action. However, these reactions are short-lived and sometimes explosive, like a fuse fizzling out. It’s unhealthy and unwise to manufacture these reactions to continually drive action. (My hot take: society's overconsumption of coffee is an attempt at manufacturing passion.)
Ideas (New Products, Projects, or Businesses)
I don’t know about you, but I get allll fired up over a cool new idea. But I learned the hard way that rushing off half cocked to pursue them too early always leads to failure and isolation when the foundation isn’t strong.
Passions (Doing What You Love)
Following your passion feels exciting, but is difficult to maintain long enough to actually build anything meaningful…. And it doesn’t always lead to success or financial stability. Passion alone isn't enough without external connections.
Purpose (Doing Meaningful Work)
Seeking purpose is an honorable motivation and comes with a certain amount of moral self-congratulation: but it also doesn’t necessarily result in profitable flow. Without structure, consistency, and goals, purpose alone is unsustainable over time.
Duty (Un-Negotiable Commitment and Consequence)
Duty sounds stuffy and old-fashioned. It makes me think of sour-faced Victorians grimly going off to fight WWI.
But when I thought about it some more, I realized I also connect it to the idea of trustworthiness: of being there for people when they need me.
My sister lives on the other side of the United States, but when she moved and had a baby in less than a month, I went to help.
I love my sister. I’m passionate about helping with births (that’s the doula side of me lol).
But I consider it my duty as the big sister to be there for my younger sisters at the key points in their lives. Enjoying it was the icing on the cake.Action is non-negotiable when it is based in our identity:
To me, the eldest is someone who takes care of, protects, and supports their younger siblings. If a bear is coming to eat them, it’s the eldest’s job to draw it off. It’s the eldest’s job to sit in the seat no one wants, take less food so the others can have more, sit with them when they’re sick, and mentor them into adulthood. (Yes, I had an interesting childhood. How did you know? 😅)
We follow laws because we’re good citizens, and fulfill obligations because we’re the sort of people who keep our word.
Duty brings both motivation and results outside of ourselves and connects us to something bigger: a cause, a way of life, a group of people.
Duty is based on a code of conduct:
We all have certain societal duties, some imposed by law (serving jury duty, for example). There are real-world consequences for not fulfilling them.
Others depend on your moral code of ethics. What I consider my duty may not be something you would feel strongly about. In that way, duty is also very individual.
When you’re starting a business, it’s important to identify whether what you’re thinking about doing connects to your sense of identity and duty.
Lots of people say to change your identity to “be the sort of person that would do x.” I call BS. Don’t try to change what is important to you overnight - it won’t work.
See if the thing measures up to you, rather than whether you measure up to it.
If it doesn’t, it’s not the right thing. Keep looking and testing and trying things out, in the background.
DO NOT go out and try to convince others to support you in your big idea... yet. Don’t cut yourself off from those around you while you try to work things out. Don’t try to rewrite yourself in an ideal image of the sort of person who would be able to effortlessly do x.
DO your duty to something bigger. You already have people to be accountable to: your family, your friends, your boss. Hold yourself responsible to fulfill your duties to them to get you back into flow. It all starts with the little things.
Key takeaway:
To achieve lasting success and flow, shift your primary motivator from reactions, ideas, passions, or purpose to duty.
A sense of duty grounded in your beliefs about yourself ensures consistency, commitment, and connection to the right strategies and support. Once momentum is established, you can integrate other motivators (like passion) 😎
👉 This exercise is part of the Sprout Level Mini-Course & Workbook.
Psst! Tired of wasting time on stuff that doesn't work? Don’t keep guessing what your business needs!
Find out exactly what level you’re at, your strengths and challenges, and the things to focus on (and what NOT to focus on) - today! 👇
