I spent the last 8 days on vacation in Puerto Vallarta, and somewhere in between the poolside cantina and the beach volleyball court I learned a valuable lesson: passion never takes a vacation.
When you’ve traveled 1,000 miles from home and your mind is clear and free to wander as it pleases – your true interests suddenly come into focus. For me, new ideas surrounding marketing, personal branding, and the social web would not stop bouncing around in my head. On the plane ride home I grabbed a pencil to quickly jot down a few thoughts I’d collected, and I wrote 14 post ideas without ever stopping.
I used to think engaging in something day in and day out was a great indicator of your passion, but now I realize:
Taking a break from an activity is the ultimate barometer of your true enthusiasm towards it.
If you are an accountant, and you are dreaming debits and credits on your vacation, good for you! If you are an accountant and all you can think of is fixing up your hot rod, maybe you’re in the wrong profession.
The moral of the story for me is this: Build your personal brand around what you want to do, not just what you are doing.
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