I had a Foundation Session with a client this week (this kicks off a one-on-one coaching relationship) and we were talking about the concept of pursuing your passions and actually making money doing it.   She was doubtful.  I’m a believer:  I love everything I do, and I make money doing it.  But, that isn’t always enough for people to see.  They think “well, you’re lucky!  Your passions are the types of things you can actually get paid for.”

My counter to that is life is short – too short to waste it on things you don’t enjoy.  In addition, if you were spending your whole day catering to your strengths, vs. fighting the horrendous, consistent uphill battle of “needs improvement”, you would be doing your company, the world, and yourself a big favor.

Seth Godin, an amazing author and speaker, just blogged today about the concept of “phoning it in” – he said:

“I know doctors, lawyers, waiters and insurance brokers who are honestly and truly passionate about what they do. They view it as an art form, a calling, and an important (no, an essential) thing worth doing.

In fact, I don’t think there’s a relationship between what you do and how important you think the work is. I think there’s a relationship between who you are and how important you think the work is.”

My lovely coach, Gabrielle Bernstein, tells us to ask yourself who are you serving, each day.  That can make even the most mundane job a passion project, can’t it?

Life IS too short to phone it in – let’s find the passion and pursue it.  There is no need to just be “doing a job”.