Note: This article is adapted from blogger Erin Falconer, who shares the top obstacles people face when pursuing their passion.
6 obstacles that prevent you from pursuing your passion
1. Limited Time
We all have the same 24 hours, and pursuing your passing in life doesn’t takes you more than that. Rather, it is associated with focusing on the important things. For this, keep in mind the 80/20 rule. In case you aren’t familiar with this rule, it states that most things in life aren't distributed equally. For example:
- 20% of clients make 80% of the profits.
- 20% of employees do 80% of the work.
- 20% of the population owns 80% of the world's resources.
You have to learn how to apply this principle in your own life. What are the things that can bring you closer to your goals? What are the tasks that waste your time?
It is easy to get caught up in the details of everyday life. However, making progress toward your goals requires focusing on the important things and ignoring what's pointless. If you find yourself wondering how to prioritize, ask yourself: “Will I regret it tomorrow if I don’t do it today?” And if you answer is yes, then you should make this a top priority.
2. Lack Of Money
There are many tips on how to manage your money, but one piece of advice in particular has stuck in my head over the years, which is the importance of saving money.
I saved six months' worth of expenses before quitting my job as a psychiatrist to pursue my passion for blogging and photography, which I achieved by automatically transferring 15% of every paycheck into my savings account before I spent any.
Try it yourself. Specify the amount that you want to transfer to your bank account in advance so that it is automatically transferred on your paycheck day. Suddenly, you will see that you have saved a large amount of money without having to think about it.
It's easy to imagine that getting more money will cure your creative problems. However, the truth is that you don’t need a lot of money to turn your dreams into reality. Additionally, you don’t have to pay huge bucks for Facebook ads or spend a lot of money to buy the best camera on the market to learn photography.
Sometimes, you have to take advantage of your current resources and remember that money is often a result of success and not the other way around. You have to manage your expenses in any way that makes this money a means to achieve your goals. However, don’t let the lack of money prevent you from achieving your goals.
3. Lack Of Creativity
Sometimes, ideas completely fade out of your mind, and you feel like you can't come up with anything creative, no matter how hard you try. However, everyone goes through times like this. For this, how do you get your creative spark back? You should get out of your house and live your life, be active, explore the world, and meet passionate people.
By doing so, you will regain your creativity, and you will end up with brand-new ideas. However, when experiencing such moments, don’t forget to write these ideas down, as fleeting thoughts can vanish in a glimpse of an eye. This is why you should keep a list of every new idea that comes to mind.
When I lack creativity, I like to contemplate the artworks of other artists who inspire me to pursue my passion, such as writers, painters, musicians, directors, and athletes. For this, read a book or watch a movie. Sometimes, we need to get inspired by the artworks of others only to remind ourselves of our lofty goals as artists.
4. Feeling Lonely
You may feel lonely in your journey of creativity. However, isolation can improve productivity, and it can hurt as well. Fortunately, it has become easier than ever to connect with other creative artists.
I finally came across an article that I really enjoyed and decided to reach out to the author who wrote it. I contacted her via Twitter to show my appreciation and suggested making a collaboration together. Fortunately, we ended up connecting via Google Hangouts to exchange ideas. Now, we plan to publish articles on each other's blogs and regularly follow up on the latest news on our creative projects.
Use technology to your advantage, find trending discussions on Twitter that are related to your career, write feedback, share your experience, try to collaborate with other people, and remember that humans are inherently social and that seeking support and encouragement from your peers is important. For this, try to collaborate with someone who works in your field, as you will never know what the future is hiding for you.
5. Self-doubt
"I'm not good enough," are four deadly words and are enough to kill any dream of success. Most creative people mistakenly underestimate themselves, and they assume that they must be the masters of their craft. Additionally, they believe that their ideas must be completely original, and if not, it isn't worth pursuing according to them.
Think of how many fitness experts there are in the world, and what about yoga experts? There are millions of them, but does each one of them is the master of their craft? Do they all have innovative ideas? Of course not.
To be liked by people, you don't have to be world-famous for what you do. Rather, it is about you, and how you attract people. For this, give people a reason to care about your ideas, be honest, tell them an inspirational story, and give them something of value. In a world where most people follow the trends, take your own path and do something different. Eventually, this is what will set you apart from others.
6. People's Lack Of Interest
Being an artist means being a sensitive person. However, this shouldn’t prevent you from sharing your artwork, and remember that sometimes it's not about the destination, but it's about the journey.
Finally, I'm in the habit of taking pictures daily and posting at least one of them online, along with writing a brief description of it. However, the number of responses was overwhelming. People asked me different questions, such as the equipment and techniques that I used to take the photo. Suddenly, art is no longer about taking a photo and posting it, but it has become associated with interacting with followers and giving them a glimpse into the creative process.
In conclusion
Don't let these obstacles stop you from achieving success. You are able to control them more than you think, so stick to hard work and keep striving because your dreams are worth it.
Add comment