What's the secret to success?

Everybody wants some panacea -- some 3-step process for success. Of course, most of the questions are of the "How do I get rich on the interweb" ilk, but truthfully, there is an answer.

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It, of course, is not an answer those of you asking that question will much care for.

However, it is the real answer and if you set out a plan based on the secret and stick to the plan and execute your tasks to accomplish your goals, you will be successful.

So, what is it?

Passion.

For real. Take a moment to examine the definition of passion:

1. A powerful emotion, such as love, joy, hatred, or anger.
2. 1. Ardent love.
   2. Strong sexual desire; lust.
   3. The object of such love or desire.
3. 1. Boundless enthusiasm: His skills as a player don't quite match his passion for the game.
   2. The object of such enthusiasm: Soccer is her passion.
4. An abandoned display of emotion, especially of anger: He's been known to fly into a passion without warning.

(This definition shamelessly lifted from Dictionary.com)

So, realistically, we care about the primary definition, but take a close look at 3.1 as well. Take a moment to think about what your passion is. Conceptualize it and try to write a simple sentence...

I have a passion for teaching.

Try to keep it simple. If it sounds more like a corporate mission statement than a simple assertion of who you are, then you're probably trying to hard. For example, here are some of my passions (in addition to the one above):

• My kids and kids in general -- they're fabulously funny and great to be around.
• Woodworking.
• My wife (see 2c above) :-)
• Designing things -- especially printed things (newsletters, brochures, business cards, etc)

These are just a few examples. Of course, how do you turn a passion into success? How do you define success? If I'm passionate about movies, then does seeing movies make me successful?

These are all good questions.

I think the more apt question, or possibly, the question behind the question is:

How do I turn what I love into something I can make a living doing?

Stay tuned, and we'll try to answer that question in the next few posts.