Learning Passion in Work from the Fox TV Show, “Glee”
As children, we love to play. We spend countless hours with toys that we connect with, developing skills, knowledge, and talent, creating the foundation of how we approach academics and life, in general. Continuing to grow up into teenagers, we form attachments to music, TV shows or movies, hobbies, interest areas, or other things that we’re passionate about.
During this time period, the object of obsession maybe basketball, drill team, cheerleading, or the arts. What does this have to do with finding passion in work as an adult? Adults remember how to be passionate about work from the new Fox TV show, Glee; it’s a reminder that as adults, we used to be passionate as children and teenagers. As adults, we learned to stop taking risks, becoming practical in our career.
When We Young, Play was Work
When we were young, the act of practicing and learning discipline in managing extracurricular activities with academics forms develops our future work habits. If we’re lucky, the things we were passionate about as children and teenagers contribute to our career today. Why is it so easy for children or teens to know what they are passionate about? It’s easy; they don’t have adult responsibilities limiting what they can or cannot do. While I’m generalizing here, kids and teens can be their age, they don’t have to worry about finding a job to pay off student loans, credit cards or pay the rent or a mortgage.
They have other challenges like peer pressure, the high school caste system, or the other ugly aspects of junior high or high school. In general, they have freedom to discover the passion that may eventually end up as their career. If you’re trying to figure out what your passion in work is, then the trick is to remember what you were passionate about when you young. It’s a good starting point. For example, I loved toys, tennis, basketball, and music. One of the common themes was structure, working within repeatable processes, creating systems, and managing.
Today, I gravitate to work that allows me to use all the things that I loved to do as a child. I connected the dots, creating a life that allowed me to leverage all the things I was passionate about as a child and teen. But how can you find your passion?
How to Find Passion in Work
If you still need a starting point after watching Glee, after reminiscing about your youth, then read “Double Lives: Crafting Your Life of Work and Passion for Untold Success.” There are so many books on “second acts,” but this one should help you with the passion in work reinvention process. I loved this book; it made me realize that people can find creative ways to work during the day and work on their passion after hours.
Heenan gives us wonderful examples, ranging from Winston Churchill to Norio Ohga (Sony chairman of the board). He also gives us practical advice based on key success factors he observed in his mini case studies. Heenan lists the following success factors of people achieving a double life:
- Listen to your heart.
- Define success in your own terms.
- Aim high.
- Take one step at a time.
- Deliver daily.
- Learn from failure.
- Ignore the naysayers.
- Maintain a maverick mind-set.
- Focus, focus, focus.
- Avoid distractions.
- Never stop learning
- Plan and persevere.
- Build a brain trust.
- Recharge your creativity.
- Reinvent yourself.
- Sell yourself.
- Know thy employer
- Seek compatible goals.
- Savor serendipity.
- Start now.
Action Item: Watch Glee
My advice? Watch Glee. Get inspired by it. Tap into the passion and courage this Glee club has in doing what they love. Identify your passion, and construct the life you want. You may have to burn the candle at both ends. Work at your day job, while you create a parallel career track for passion, but it’s worth it. You’ll find contribution and contentment, while possibly making your day job tolerable.
The pilot episode of Glee will be available on Hulu for only 21 days. For the iTunes free download of Glee, click here.
[...] Learning Passion in Work from the Fox TV Show quot Glee Posted by root 9 days ago (http://smartlemming.com) Adults remember how to be passionate about work from the new fox tv show glee submitted by lori grant on may 20 2009 5 27 pmno comment i connected the dots creating a life that allowed me to leverage all the things i if you like this then please subscribe Discuss | Bury | News | Learning Passion in Work from the Fox TV Show quot Glee [...]