For the last couple days I have been with several potential church planters helping to assess, train and equip them for the future. Our gathering and process is very focused and unique. We create an environment that is highly stressful, disruptive and experiential. In many ways it mirrors what the church planting world looks like.
It has been inspiring to listen to these emerging leaders share the depths of their heart, dreams and calling. The one’s who stand out are definitely those who have their passion bucket full.
This experience has made me think about what it looks like when our passion bucket is full. Here are a few of my observations and thoughts to filling your passion bucket.
1. Make sure you have a personal mission statement that gets your heart pumping. Last year, I decided that I needed a personal mission statement, so I called and expert and friend who charges over $500 an hour to help CEO’S discover just that. After a fun but strenuous exercise I landed on my personal mission statement. Simply stated, “I exist to help leaders and organizations move forward.” Just typing that makes my heartbeat and creates intense emotion within me! I have walked several high functioning leaders through the same exercise and have watched them fill up with passion as they discover their personal mission. The bottom line is simple…If what you spend most if your time and energy doing and your passion aren’t aligned then your passion bucket will be empty.
2. Make sure what you get to do each day is not only one of the first things you think about when you wake up, but what gets you up each day. I think this is the great litmus test for knowing if our passion bucket is full. Passion gets us up, it fuels us and it brings out the best in us. I believe we were created to spend each waking hour doing those things that we are most passionate about. I also believe we make the greatest impact when we operate out of a position of passion.
3. You need to discover your sweet spot and operate out of it. There are a couple things here. First, in what way does your passion best manifested in day to day experiences and opportunities? For example, if your passion is writing, then how much time do you spend writing each week? There are 168 hours in the week, if you only spend 3 hours writing, then your passion bucket is empty. Finding your sweet spot is simply taking your passion and finding the place where you can use it and experience it most. For some of us this means it’s time to find another adventure, for others it’s simply recreating and reinventing the way you currently operate. One way to explore this is by taking inventory of the things you allocate your time to and asking
4. Your passion is your filter! The things you’re passionate about should help you decide what you want to do with your life, where you want to spend your time and those things that bring you the greatest sense of value. Let your passion help you decide where you should focus your relational equity, time and energy. In other words, there are many things we should all say no to because it doesn’t bring the best out of us.
5. Spend time with people who have the same passion as you do. There are too many passion killers out there. When you spend time with people who do, like and dream about the same things you do, then you will find great energy and purpose. One thing you can do is write your passions down and then ask who shares these same passions. Once you figure that out, then you need to find ways to connect, dream and experience your passion with these people.
There are more ways to make sure your passion bucket is full. Feel free to comment and add your own.
