“Do what you love, you’ll never have to work a day in your life,” “Follow your passion”, etc etc; these are the messages being fed to us. And while it sounds all well and good, there’s more to it than is being said.
Following your dream and doing what you love isn’t always fun. It takes work. You still have to get up and show up every day even if you are doing what you love. Think about the coolest job in the world. Probably being a TikToker right or an Instagram Influencer. That takes a lot of work. You have to get up, get dressed and film videos, take photos, work with brands, negotiate contracts, even when you don’t feel like it. Even when you’re chasing your passion, you still have days when you feel lazy and unmotivated. That’s the truth. It’s not always fun. And then consider the business side of things whether it’s working with a team, reporting to a manager, doing uncomfortable things like public speaking, pitching, or marketing yourself and your business.
Chasing your dream is also uncomfortable. The famous adage ‘If your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough’ is still true. And if your goals are big and audacious, then be prepared to be uncomfortable and deal with fear. Think of your favourite rapper/artist. Despite the numerous times they perform in front of a crowd, I’m sure they still get nervous. They still got to practice. They still got to prepare. They still got to put in the work. And what you’ll find out is that as time goes on, the more you keep at your dreams, the more comfortable and better you get at it. And the minute you get comfortable is the time you need to set even bigger goals.
What differentiates successful and mediocre people is that successful people keep on challenging themselves. It’s never enough. They constantly want more. When you think they killed it and it’s all done and dusted, they’re thinking ‘Nah, I want more’. It’s always another one and another one. And that’s why they are where they are. What if Serena got comfortable after winning her first grand slam or even after winning ten slams, we sure won’t be celebrating her greatness today if she got comfortable too early?
So by all means, follow your dreams. Do what you love. But just know it requires the same, probably even more work and hustle than doing what you hate, especially if you want to be the best. Nothing in life comes easy, especially making money.
The key is that when you do have those low, unmotivated moments, you push through them and don’t quit when it gets hard. Everything’s hard. Choose your hard.
