The M.A.P. Maker

Lessons from 9 years as a Passion Catalyst

[Scroll down to the bottom for links to the full series.]

Nine years ago today, I took the first step on a journey that would take me from feeling like a professional malcontent to being a Passion Catalyst. I took off the mask I had been wearing for so many years in my career and started showing up as who I am. It has made all the difference. 

I wrote more about taking the plunge in a post a year ago. Today though, I have been thinking less how it happened and more about what I've learned in the last nine years. 

There's an interesting dual view doing work like this, helping people create careers and lives that energize and inspire them. On the one hand, I get to watch other people's journeys unfold. I get to see the obstacles they encounter - both internal and external - and watch as they find their way past them. I get to see what helps them really get traction and move forward. I get a front row seat on both the frustration and the joy that the process inevitably creates. 

At the same time, I'm also just another poor schlep trying to find my own way. Far from being the mythical all-knowing expert who has it all together, I have my share of frustrations and foibles. Sometimes I feel like I'm on top of the world, and occasionally I question what the hell I'm doing. Sometimes my focus seems laser sharp, and now and then it seems clear as mud. Same as anyone else, really. 

From both those perspectives - both my own journey and the journeys of others - I have had a chance to learn an enormous amount about pursuing passion and creating what I describe as FUEL, a "fully energized life."

My initial intent was to write one blog post describing some of the lessons learned. But as i started whiteboarding them, I saw that the post would be waaaaay too long. So instead I am making it a series. 

Stay tuned for my lessons learn from nine years as a Passion Catalyst. And thanks for reading!

Lesson compilation

Most people's concept of passion is limited

Authenticity creates confidence

Meaning is a powerful motivator

You are your own best expert

Success is not a spectator sport

Tinybox thinking limits your potential

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

If you only read 3 books in 2010, read these

What is it going to take to make 2010 an amazing year for you? There are many factors, of course, but one of the simplest and potentially most important is reading. The right book can literally change your life.

Looking at the books on my shelf, I thought, "If someone could only read three books in the coming year, which ones would I recommend? Which ones would plant the seeds for growth, positive change and success?"

Below are the three I came up with. I would also love to hear what three you would recommend, so leave a comment and let me know!

The Art of Possibility
by Rosamund Stone Zander & Benjamin Zander

A sense of possibility is one of the most powerful assets you can have. The authors (a psychologist and the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra) combine their insights and offer a creative perspective on creating and enhancing that sense of possibility.

The Zanders' approach is based on two basic ideas. First, "It's all made up." That is, the way we look at the world - the story we tell - creates the reality of what we experience. And second, we can consciously change the way we look at the world, which changes our story, which changes our reality.

The book is full of fresh ideas that made me go, "That's a great way to look at it!" The Zanders' tap into his experience as a conductor, using music as a metaphor. One of my favorite examples is "one-buttock playing." They describe a pianist who is completely swept away, whose body is moving in flow with the music. Two-buttock playing is plodding along and living an uninspired life. One-buttock playing is accessing your passion.

Love Is the Killer App
by Tim Sanders

I have often thought that this book should be mandatory reading for young people just starting out their careers (though it's 100% relevant whatever stage of your career you're at). Sanders' basic premise can be summed up with the idea that nice guys finish first. In the book, he outlines three basic components to being what he calls a lovecat.

Knowledge: Build your knowledge and then spread your knowledge. Look for ways that others can benefit from what you know.

Network: Build your network and then make connections. Look for connections you can make to the benefit of others in your network.

Compassion: This is what sets you apart from the automatons. This is the element of warmth and connection that allows you to create stronger, more compelling relationships with people.

Sanders offers up a picture of both how you can do it and how his ideas are based on a bottom-line reality.

Embracing Your Inner Critic
by Hal Stone & Sidra Stone

OK, raise your hand if you ever feel the bite of your inner critic's sharp tongue. We all have that nagging voice that is never happy with who we are, what we do, or how we do it. And for many of us, that inner critic is an enormous obstacle to creating a life that energizes and inspires us.

If that sounds oh-too-familiar, this book offers a great way to change that. Based on Hal and Sidra Stone's Voice Dialogue technique, Embracing Your Inner Critic takes a look at where that inner critic comes from, what role it serves, and how to transform your relationship with it.

One of the most valuable aspects of this book is the way it takes something abstract and intangible - that voice of self-flagellation that can be so ingrained that we mistake it for reality - and offers a concrete framework for recognizing it and diffusing its power. 

Imagine if 2010 marked the year you turned down the volume on your inner critic!

How about you? If I could only read three books in the coming year, which ones would you recommend?

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

What can I learn from this?

Every second of every day, you are creating your life story. Not just by the actions you take (or don't take), but also by how you choose to perceive what is happening.

In her great book, Embracing Uncertainty, Susan Jeffers talks about incorporating one small phrase into your life that can help you stay focused on the positive, whatever the situation: "I can learn from this." She writes...

When we have the phrase, "I can learn from this," firmly imprinted on our minds we can react much more positively to the experiences in life that bring us pain.

Once we realize that we can learn from all things, our goal then is to focus on the learning, that is, to focus on the good instead of the bad.

The thing I love about this simple idea is not just that it gives us a way to harvest the learning from experiences that we may otherwise have blown past, but also that it shifts our focus and encourages us to aim our attention at something specifically positive, regardless of the situation.

So next time you fall on your face, or even just stub your toe (figuratively speaking), stop and say, "I can learn from this." Then, with as much curiosity and compassion as you can muster, ask, "OK, what can I learn from this?"

Try writing it down to make the learning more real and give you a resource to refer back to.

Odds are good you will continue having challenging experiences in your life. Asking, "What can I learn from this" gives you an opportunity to both reduce the pain and get the most out of the opportunity to learn and grow.

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Harness the power of great questions

When it comes to creating the life we want, I'm a huge believer in the power of questions. Questions can shine a light on things we've been missing, jolt us out of an un-thinking rut, and help us look at the world in a whole new way.

This article on asking empowering questions is a great place to start exploring what the might question mark can do for you. I especially like the list of empowering questions you can start asking today.

How about you? Do you have any favorite questions you like to ask?

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Create a better life with 30-day experiments

Do you ever read about a self-development idea and think, "Yeah! That's a great idea/technique/approach. I'll definitely make that a part of my life...ummmm...maybe tomorrow."

I know I do. Despite my best intentions, I just can't overcome inertia and bridge the gap between the nonexistent and the consistent. 

To counter that, I have started creating 30-day containers in which I experiment with a new idea. Rather than steadfastly incorporating something new into my life for all eternity, I turn it into an experiment with a finite time-frame.

Instead of going into it with a rigid expectation that it will have a massively positive impact, I go into it with a sense of curiosity. "What will happen if I do this for thirty days? What results will I get? How will this affect me?" I leave the door open to a positive result. I also leave the door open to being surprised and discovering something I hadn't expected.

If there's something valuable there, I can continue incorporating some or all of it into my life. If there's not, I can leave it by the side of the road.

The 30-day container does two things. First, it makes it short enough to feel doable, and second, it creates a sense of focus and commitment. "I'm going to do this every day for 30 days" is a lot more likely to yield consistent action than, "I'm going to do this from now on."

What 30-day experiment could you start today?

--

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

--

by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst

Experimentation opens the door to results

For the last couple months I've been taking a basic woodworking class. Last night I finally had a chance to start playing with the lathe.

Now, the last time I used a lathe was in 7th grade woodshop, so in the 27 years since you might say my skills have gotten a little rusty.

I bought some pieces of wood to use solely for experimentation. No project. No focus on creating a great end result. Just playing with it to learn what I'm doing again and familiarize myself with the technique, the tools, and the shapes they create.

Given that my intention was to focus entirely on the learning aspect of it and not the end result, it was interesting to notice how I had to consciously stop myself from tensing up if I did something I didn't like aesthetically. I had to remind myself that it was OK even if I "screwed the whole thing up," as long as it served the purpose of giving me insight and understanding I can apply to my efforts in the future.

That's one of my big bugaboos, trying to be too good at things from the onset. I'm getting better with time, but it's good to have things like this to remind me that with anything new, my first task is to learn, and only then can I work on perfecting.

When I focus on experimentation over end results, it takes the pressure off to do it just right, which in turn opens the door to a free-flowing feeling of doing and learning, rather than a tense feeling of must...be...perfect.

And paradoxically, by not focusing on the end result, I end up opening the door to much better results (not to mention more fun) than obsessing on those end results from the beginning.

In my book, 101 Ways to Get Wild About Work, there's a chapter called, "You Can't Fail in an Experiment." It's an approach that lets you take perfectionism out of the equation and lets you experiment and learn.

Is there anything new you want to do where your desire to get it just right is holding you back? What would an experimentation approach look like? What step can you take with an eye towards learning?

--

 

Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst ^TM

12 months = 12 new opportunities to stimulate my brain

Want to keep your mind flexible and sharp and feeling stimulated by life? Give it a healthy dose of the new, interesting, and unusual.

It's easy to get so focused on whatever it is we're trying to achieve, or whatever obligations we need to meet, that our experience of the world becomes a little monochromatic.

Not only can this lead to boredom, but it can also make it challenging to adjust and adapt to new situations. Because at the same time as we have to put energy into adapting to the new situation (or creating it), we also have to put energy into busting out of the inertia of the same ol' same ol'.

Yesterday, I started a wood shop class at one of the local community colleges. I took a couple shop classes as a young pup in my teens, which I loved, but I haven't done anything with it since. The class will definitely be something "new and unusual" for me.

Though it wasn't my intention when I signed up, that class is going to be the beginning of my grand experiment for 2008. Every month I'm going to take a class or a workshop on something new and unfamiliar that has nothing to do with my day-to-day world.

The idea came while browsing the local classes listed on craigslist. There are so many interesting things that I could dabble in and learn about. I feel like a kid in a candy store.

I could take a silversmithing class, or a workshop on a native plants. I could learn to do the lindy hop, take a pottery class, or cook up a mean Thai dish. The possibilities are nearly endless.

And everything I learn about expands my worldview, stimulates my brain, and keeps my perspective fresh. Not a bad deal, eh?

How about you? What would you do? What would you learn?

 

Check out 101 Ways to Get Wild About Work

Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst ^TM

 

Open your mind to learning in The Beginner Zone

Do you want your path to stay vibrant and interesting, or are you OK with plodding along in a semi-stagnant state for the rest of your life?

Given your choice, of course you're going to pick vibrant and interesting. But to do that, you're going to need to venture regularly into a place many people find a bit uncomfortable - The Beginner Zone.

You know the place. It's the one where you're jumping into something new and you're not exactly sure how to do it. You don't have the solid ground of the known under your feet, and you're having to learn and create as you go. It can be a place of uncertainty, but it's also the place where we can find some of the greatest potential.

Right now I'm reading Kevin Eikenberry's book, Remarkable Leadership. In it, he talks about the beginner's mind, and its importance in having a learning mind-set. Here are some of the ways he describes that beginner's mind:

• Beginners are secure enough in themselves that they can say, "I don't know," to themselves and to others...
• Beginners don't connect their self-worth to their expertise. They are more likely to tie their internal worth to their ability to get the answer, to be adaptable, at to be resourceful in learning what is needed.
• Beginners are willing to ask for help, and they actively seek out experts as resources to help with the quest for continual learning.
• Beginners recognize other beginners and support them however they can.
• Beginners recognize there is always more to learn about learning. As such, they learn not only about things they want to know or be able to do, but they learn about learning and spend time and effort on improving as a learner.
• Beginners realize that all learning is a journey or process without a final destination. They recognize the value of learning something new every day and aren't discouraged by the fact that there is no real end. They recognize learning as valuable in and of itself.

These are some excellent points to keep in mind. The one that resonated especially deeply with me was the one about focusing on the ability to get an answer, rather than on the expertise itself. Definitely something to keep reminding myself as I go.

Something to ponder: How much time do you spend in The Beginner Zone? What helps you embrace The Beginner Zone enthusiastically? What gets in your way?

Check out The Occupational Adventure Guide

Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst ^TM

Learn it. Record it. Apply it. (...or, don't flush yer learnin' down the drain)

Do you ever feel swamped in information overload? Pete over at Great Circle has an excellent post about "drinking from the firehose" of information, absorbing the best of it without drowning.

He offers several tips, all of which are worth exploring, but one in particular jumped out at me:

When you’ve finished that book, article or DVD - write yourself a one sentence summary of its relevance and/or application to your situation.

If you're anything like me, you've probably come across the solution to just about any problem or challenge you may be encountering right now, only to have it dribble back out your ears and disappear.

I love the idea of sitting down and saying, "What have I gotten from this book, and how can I apply that to my life?" Maybe it's more than just a sentence. Maybe it's a paragraph, or a series of relevant points. However you approach it, the beauty is that over time you start to create an ongoing resource to draw from.

The follow-up part of the question, "...and how can I apply that to my life?" is the clincher here. When you know that, you can start to take action. When you start to take action, what you've learned can stop being just a theoretically cool idea and make a real difference in your life.

You probably don't even need to buy any new books for this to start having an effect. Just go to your bookshelf and start pulling books off. Grab one and leaf through it and ask that question, "What did I get from this book? How can I apply that to my life?"

You might just be surprised at what you already have at your fingertips.

Check out The Occupational Adventure Guide

Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst ^TM