The first step is to find out what you love - and don't be practical about it. The second step is to start doing what you love immediately, in any small way possible.
Doing your own thing is a generous act. Being gifted creates obligations, which means you owe the world your best effort at the work you love. You too are a natural resource.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Pursuing your passions is both an act of generosity and a responsibility to contribute your best to the world.
In this quote, Barbara Sher highlights the importance of individuality and passion in one's work. She suggests that when you engage in pursuits that truly resonate with you, it not only serves your personal fulfillment but also benefits others, as your unique contributions are a valuable resource. The idea is that with the gifts you have, there comes an expectation to share them diligently, making your efforts not just a personal endeavor but a form of service to the world.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can inspire students during a graduation speech about following their passions.
More from Barbara Sher
All quotes →Find out what you love._x000D_ Do it because you love it._x000D_ Stick with it._x000D_ Start now.
Down deep we really know our worth, but we don't have easy access to that knowledge. We need to hear praise coming from outside ourselves or we won't remember that we deserve it.
Imaginary obstacles are insurmountable. Real ones aren't. But you can't tell the difference when you have no real information. Fear can create even more imaginary obstacles than ignorance can. That's why the smallest step away from speculation and into reality can be an amazing relief...The Reality Solution means: Do it before you're ready.
You can learn new things at any time in your life if you're willing to be a beginner. If you actually learn to like being a beginner, the whole world opens up to you.
Similar quotes
When you want to do a big thing, get the mental pattern, make it perfect, know just what it means, enlarge your thought, keep it to yourself, pass it over to the creative power behind all things, wait and listen, and when the impression comes, follow it with assurance. Don't talk to anyone about it. Never listen to negative talk or pay attention to it and you will succeed where all others fail.
The sky is falling, the wind is calling_x000D_ _x000D_ Stand for something, or die in the morning
Even in the most difficult situation there is always, somehow, a way to triumph
Work takes on new meaning when you feel you are pointed in the right direction. Otherwise, it's just a job, and life is too short for that.
The competitive advantages the marketplace demands is someone more human, connected, and mature. Someone with passion and energy, capable of seeing things as they are and negotiating multiple priorities as she makes useful decisions without angst. Flexible in the face of change, resilient in the face of confusion. All of these attributes are choices, not talents, and all of them are available to you.
You can pray until you faint, but unless you get up and try to do something, God is not going to put it in your lap.