PASSIONATE people are either on the winning or losing end. Well, most of them end up on the winning side depending on what kind of criteria we use to measure success. No matter where they end up, one thing is sure, passionate people are the pilots of society’s fate.
In any given field, in sports, in the academe, or in the business world, passion always fuels success. Passion is not only about industry or determination, it is the combination of this two, adding focus and excellence, plus the main ingredient, the unadulterated desire to achieve a certain goal. Passion pushes a person to be at his/her best and when this best is not enough, he/she discovers ways to make himself/herself better than his/her best. It is passion that keeps the lights on in the middle of the night to accomplish a task. It is passion that keeps alarm clocks yelling against the silence of the dawn.
As a result of this extraordinary character, passionate people are being pushed to the top or being dragged to the limelight. They become leaders, founders, advocates, innovators, inventors, reapers of medals, idols, exemplars, and inspiration. Mother Theresa, for instance, had a passion in helping the sick and poor and make the love of God become apparent to all. Her passion led her to an impoverished town of India and founded a congregation that dedicated in helping the needy. She was so immersed in her advocacy that she had given up all her remaining years in the area. Many business stories come from the passion of the owners to succeed in life or from their passion of their work.
Passionate people do not care much of the odds. They are not discouraged by failures and setbacks rather these keep them more motivated and hungry to go on. Yes, oftentimes, they go to the dim light to shed tears of disappointment and letdown but once those liquids dried up, this people showed up again with much greater fervor and desire. Passionate people bleed like the rest of us but unlike many, they treat shortcomings as challenges and areas for improvement. So they do not shrink in the midst of this challenges, they face them with courage.
In return, passionate people receive recognition such as monetary award, they get honor and appreciation, redemption, and salvation. These awards are not the primary goal though because for people who work with passion, happiness lies in doing their tasks and does not primarily lie in their completion. To develop passion on what we do, it is imperative that we have a certain liking in it. It is necessary that our hearts are into it. In short, we love what we do and we see a sense of purpose in doing it. Passion is an emotional characteristic so it requires the corroboration of the heart to develop passion.
Passion with all its beauty and grandiosity, has also its fallback, a stain, a dark spot or a weakness. Passion consumes people and when they lose control of this desire, this feeling of love could turn into a flaming rage like fire. Passion, like fire, devours and destroys. When people who are too passionate snapped out, they lose the use of reason and they entirely base their action on their emotion rather than their intellect. So there is what we call the crime of passion.
We have lovers murdering husbands or wives, we have husbands killing their own wives in cold blood or vice versa, and suitors slaying rival suitors. Jealousy is a crime of passion. But crime of passion should not only limited to relationship crimes but must include any crimes involving strong desires such an athlete injuring a fierce competitor, or an employee defaming another employee to be favored of a desired company job position.
To ensure that we do not fall into the dark side of passion, the object of passion must be something true, good, and beautiful. The means or process in attaining our desires must also have the same characteristics; true, good, and beautiful. We have passion to be an Olympic medalist. This must be acceptable because our intention is something true, good, and beautiful. Our action in achieving this Olympic medal should also be desirable. Passion have various object of desires such as passion to excel, passion for work, and others. Our emotions therefore should always be kept in check. We need to keep the balance between desire and greed.
To have the passion in what we do, we must love what we do or our hearts must be into it. We cannot just develop passion in something we are forced to take because it is difficult to see the sense in doing it. Passion results to success and happiness. It helps us to reach our full potential and gives us lot of positive things in return.
Yet passion is dangerous when unchecked and unmanaged. It can hurt or kill us. It can hurt or kill others. It can lead us away from God. So passion must be something true, good, and beautiful. A person without passion is like an object floating in the sea. It goes where the current takes it. There is no clear direction. It is lost.