Fanning That Spark

If you have been following my blog, you know that my son was accepted into the University of Wyoming. It took him three years of junior college, but he made it. What was the impetus for him to finally apply to a four-year college? A spark. He realized that, by combining his passion for history and the outdoors, he could have a fulfilling career in archeology and love what he does. He didn’t need to settle for a mundane “job” and could pursue something more meaningful.

My advice to both of my children their entire lives has been not to follow the money but to follow their passion. Define success in terms beyond financial goals. While this is decent advice, it isn’t complete. It’s missing something. Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos, breaks it down like this: There are three types of happiness: Pleasure, Passion, and Purpose. The belief that we can derive perpetual joy from pleasure is a lie. That feeling of instant gratification we get from buying an expensive car or dating that really good looking, yet vapid, person is just “chasing rainbows.” It does not result in long term happiness. So passion is the answer, right? Well, it’s closer. Passion is doing what you truly enjoy. We have all heard the advice “Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” While the joy derived from doing something you are passionate about lasts longer than chasing activities solely for pleasure, there is an even higher form of happiness-serving a higher purpose. Helen Keller knew this when she opined “Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” I have written about this in prior blogs-the “kindness” and “happiness” link. When we are feeling dejected, we can counter negative thoughts by recalling our good deeds related to our “higher purpose. ” THAT is what brings us lasting joy.

My directive to my son as he starts this new chapter in his life will be this: Now that you have found your passion, figure out a way to elevate it into a “higher purpose.” I think I may also laminate the following quote and put it in his luggage as it’s pretty darned good:

What is your higher purpose? If you are not sure or are open to new ideas for finding a “higher meaning”, check out exciting volunteer opportunities here.