The annoying part of the movie, The Titanic, was that Jack (Leonardo Dicaprio) died in the freezing sea. I was upset. The lovers had a good chance of survival. Jack’s attempt to put Rose (Kate Winslet) on the rescue boat failed because of her passion for him. She couldn’t imagine being apart. At the end, he died.
The intensity of passion often defies logic. Gripped by its urgency, you feel the heat in your bones. It’s an intoxicating drive that can only be appeased with action.
Entrepreneurship is the passion trade. Burning with intense desire for their vision, entrepreneurs plunge into the dictates of their dream. Nothing can stop them; it must be done – and done now! It’s sometimes described as ‘raw’ passion.
Now, that’s the challenge. Passion can be blinding when not properly appropriated. If one is not careful, the same passion that launched the idea could destroy the dream.
Passion is a starter. It gives you enough motivation to get going. I would advise that you don’t ‘go-out-to-sea’ without it. Raw passion is required to birth an idea; make no mistake about it.
However, it is important to move from raw to refined passion (it means making raw passion practical and useful). Raw passion is short term. Refined passion has every element of the raw, plus the added advantage of long term, boredom-proof, consistent action. It’s not tied to emotional fluctuation. This is the forte of professionals.
For instance, refined passion drives you to seek out a good accountant who would help keep your finances in order. Refined passion makes you care about the legal details of your work.
It would help to spread out your passion beyond your feelings, refine it and turn pro. So what does your raw passion mean in practical terms? How does it play out? What does it look like?
To get a clear picture of the nature of your passion, make a list of the action steps that you would take in response to your drive. Are you in it for the long haul? Consistent action is the essence of refined passion. Avoid the trap of short-term-raw-drive. Play the long game.
Twitter: @SamuelMpamugo