Seven Principles of Passion
Leadership is agony apart from passion.
Everyone one who ever made a difference had passion. Nothing of significance is done without it.
5 things that drain passion:
- Distant leaders.
- Work without purpose.
- Labor without rest.
- Achievement without reward.
- Negative teammates.
Reform or remove persistently negative people, even if they deliver results.
1 benefit of passion:
Cowardly leaders hide, lie, and make self-serving, self-protective decisions. Some fears are good, but cowardice is always bad.
Passion fuels boldness.
Leaders with passion speak up, lean in, and make mission-driven decisions.
Leaders with passion:
- Act boldly.
- Serve freely.
- Commit willingly.
When you fuel passion in others, you enable action.
Don’t drive people. Ignite their passion.
7 principles of passion:
- Share purpose. People who share purpose fuel each other’s passion.
- Do something that matters. It’s hard to get excited about something that doesn’t matter.
- No purpose, no passion.
- What are you doing, really? Making widgets? Selling products? Is that all?
- Chase a dream. Describe the world where your purpose is fulfilled. How is the world better because you succeed?
- Fight an enemy. Passion gets hotter when an enemies come knocking. What happens if you fail?
- Tell stories of passionate exploits.
- Who’s going the extra mile?
- Who joined the team?
- Who shares your beliefs?
- Energize passion with belief. They won’t go all-in if you focus on their weaknesses. Believe in your team.
- Reach high. Excellence honors passion. Noble purpose demands high standards.
- Describe better. Avoid nagging about failure.
- The opportunity of progress is it’s never done.
- Celebrate wins.
- Reach for better.
- Focusing on failure drains passion.
Bonus: Passionate leaders attract talent; passionless leaders repel it.
What drains your passion?
What ignites and fuels your passion?
Man, you’ve been on a tear this week! Loving your blogs. Just sorry I haven’t been making time to comment on them. I need to make that time (to comment here) for myself no matter what as it helps to energize me for the day.
That would be my passion suggestion: take time to do something for yourself or another if it energizes you, even when you feel the pressure of a deadline looming or a deluge of emails to overcome. Energizing yourself first helps immensely so that you can tackle things when the time is right and unload your peaked energy like a can of whip-ass!
Thanks James. Nicely said. I find leaders neglect their own energy. But, as you indicate, we do better when we feel energized rather than drained.
Good morning Dan;
Been awhile since I’ve commented. I posted late to yesterdays blog. As always, inspiring and informative. Every morning I look for some new wisdom. Today’s blog does not disappoint.
It’s hard to imagine how organization such as Apple, Micro-Soft, or any Fortune 500 Company for that matter could possibly expect to be successful without passion/passionate people.
Passion drives needed change and innovation. Passion fuels ‘Action’. Without action, passionate emotion & great ideas amount to ‘fluff’ and a waste of time and energy.
Company Exec’s, Business Owners, & CEO’s, identify your people that are passionate about what they do and how they do it. Get to know them, (REALLY GET TO KNOW THEM). Consider their skills and talents, and place them in the rite job fit. When times become challenging, requiring a little re-stratigizing, (I just made that one up Dan. You like it?), passionate people will rise to the occasion inspiring & pulling team members along.
Without passion, work is simply ‘Drudgery’ and doesn’t seem to matter. I don’t remember where I heard this, or, who may have said it. But it seems relevant as we’re considering Passionate Leadership;
“Living a life that matters does not happen by accident,
nor is it a matter of circumstance,
living a life that matters, is but a Matter of Choice.”
I choose to live a life that matters, WITH PASSION…
Cheers Dan
Steve
My passion drains when someone neglects me or my dreams/plans. I want to follow my passion and am doing so. In the past I used to be put down by people or situations. I don’t want that anymore.
My passion is ignited by other people’s enthusiasm and when inspiration is around the corner. Learning new skills and doing new things is also good for me. I love it. Taking things as an adventure and looking for adventures ignites and fuels my passions.
Thanks Dan
Love number 1. What we do make a difference? Or, are we holding another meeting because it simply looks good and sounds good? I prefer the, talk, plan and go over the plan and then,
” Get er done” and move on. Measure twice cut once. Ross Perot, Presidential Candidate and Billionaire
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Hi Dan, I Love this post!
Passion is contagious, it’s challenging, and must be one of my ‘constants’ in life; it is worth the effort, it makes the journey so sweet. M
“Do something wonderful, people may imitate it.”
~Albert Schweitzer~
Hi Melanie;
“Like your comment”! Human beings are interesting ‘and’ predictable; (People we idolize, we emulate). It’s human nature.A Leaders most important responsibility is to be a positive example. “Some day’s,, it takes a serious conscience effort”…
LEAD-ON
Thanks
Steve
I am with timehta on what drains my passion, too. Not knowing what to do next or knowing the goal. I also agree that leaders need to fill their own reserve pools before sharing the water with others.
Great read. What drains my passion? Lack of direction: not knowing what to do next, not knowing the goal. Weak, selfish leadership.
What fuels my passion? When others say it cannot be done. When there’s a challenge that no one has resolved yet. When the purpose behind it emotionally attaches me to the task.
I’m quoting you in a short presentation I’m doing next week. Your blog is fantastic, and though I’m not an avid “commenter” as it were, I am an avid reader.
May God continue to bless your work!
Love “Don’t drive people. Ignite their passion.”
Great read. As someone in the process of building out a team, this really resonates. Principle 1: “Share purpose. People who share purpose fuel each other’s passion.” is dismally lacking in so many organizations.
Really interesting blog on passion and I also like “Don’t drive people. Ignite their passion.” I can’t imagine a life without passion, without purpose.
What ignites my passion is learning be it through curiosity towards self and/or others, self-reflection, reflecting on my impact on others, what others say or do, how others interact, discoveries in nature, plus so much more. I search for learning opportunities everywhere, every moment of the day to keep that flame of passion/purpose alive.
Thanks so much for such thoughtful blog posts.
Dan,
This comment has me thinking: “Achievement without reward.” Yes, that does drain passion. Sometimes it seems like there is no reward in sight. One approach to consider, in moderation, is to give yourself small rewards for achieving milestones on a large goal.
“Describe the world where your purpose is fulfilled. How is the world better because you succeed?” rocks my world today!! Can’t wait to reflect in my journal time tonight on this question.
Thank you for this! I love conversations about passion. I’m going to be a teacher so this will be really beneficial to forward on to my students as well. Inspiring them to be leaders is my number one goal!
Everything in this post is beautifully say.