Passionately Passionate

Can I tell you something?

I LOVE passionate people. There’s something about a truly passionate person that is just so attractive. I’m not talking about people who re-post something on social media over and over about a certain issue (you know those people… the one’s that you kind of want to block because they never actually SAY anything, but passive aggressively tell you how wrong you are by re-posting links from the same single-minded site). I’m talking about the people who are so PASSIONATE about something in their lives that it leads them to ACTION. Actual get-out-of-bed, put-your-phone-down, dig-your-heels-in action.

Passion inspires me.

Passion encourages me that there are people out there who are truly trying to make a difference. People who DO make a difference, no matter how great or small. And it’s a difference that not everyone can make.

Many of you who know me, know that Im not particularly affectionate towards dogs. It’s not that I hate them as a species, it’s just that I’m not the person who’s going to cuddle your dog and accept sloppy, wet tongue slobber…uh, i mean,”kisses” every time I come to visit. In fact, if that happens over a period of time, I probably will stop coming over. Or just tell you to please take charge of your canine love. Obviously, Im not overly passionate about them. Actually, Im not passionate about them at all. And yet, I have many friends, one in particular, that LOVES dogs. Absolutely melts. She eagerly makes an effort to be their voice. She’s actively rescued more than one dog, brought them into her home and devoted herself to them in an effort to undo the harsh consequences of a neglect-filled life.

She is passionately making a difference by standing up for the rights of those who can’t speak for themselves. She advocates on their behalf and rallies others to do the same, or, to at least think differently. She cares so deeply about these abandoned dogs that she doesn’t even think to get into a virtual-war over those who own pure-bred dogs or those who own rescues. She doesn’t call down those who truly love and care for their show-quality puppies. She simply promotes thinking about a lifestyle that would help the less fortunate. She is their champion and leaves the rest up to you.

Her passion drives her to make a change and to inspire others to follow her lead. She’s inspired me… and I don’t even like dogs!

The thing about passion is that you can become passionately passionate.

Passionately passionate people often miss the mark. They fail to inspire. They become so focused on their intense feelings and emotions that they incidentally fixate on being passionate about the “passion” rather than passionate about the cause.

I met one of those people two weeks ago.

She was so passionate about her passion that she left me feeling disgusted, shamed and less-than. Rather than inspire, she disheartened. Rather than encourage, she dejected. Her passionate passion deadened her movement in the cause because she belittled anyone who did not think or act likewise.

How are you to gain movement or see change in a certain area if you insult and shame those who may not be alongside you? You can’t.

You will actually hinder the movement of a cause when your passion takes centre stage. Think of it like a car. Passion is meant to be at the wheel, driving you forward, pushing you to excel and to actively pursue new avenues. It’s not meant to step outside of the car and stand in front of it. A car can’t move when there’s someone standing in the way. Traffic stops. Or should I say, a car won’t move. It can, but it will drive over the obstacle. And if you’re the obstacle, that really hurts.

I’ve been there. I’ve so desperately wanted something to occur or to change (I’m sure I’ll talk about that at some point or other), that I allowed my passion to not only drive me forward, but to actually step outside of the proverbial passion-driven car and stand in front of it, beating on the hood for change. And nothing happened, except a whole lot of frustration… and then the car drove over me. Leaving me behind to pick up the pieces.

So, stop getting in your own way. Stop beating on the hood of your own vehicle and step back inside. Take a good look at the things that churn deeply within you and ask yourself whether you’re inspiring others to join you, or discouraging them to the point that they won’t listen to you anymore.

Go, be passionate. Inspire change. Actively pursue the things that are impressed upon you.

Allow your passion to embolden others.

Because THAT is what makes you strong.