In this video, Larry Smith addresses mostly college students to inspire them to follow their passion. This is even more important today than it used to be in my generation. As he points out, it used to be that if you worked hard, you could have a great career even if you were doing something you didn’t really like. I don’t think that’s true anymore. There are too many people willing to “work hard” and most of them are overseas, willing to work hard for less money than Americans.
I think it’s even more important now to follow your passion for your life’s work. When you do so, you become indispensable, or what Seth Godin refers to as a Linchpin, and you embody the “right brain” qualities of “inventiveness, empathy, meaning” that will predominate the future according to Daniel Pink in A Whole New Mind.
Near the end of the video, Smith illustrates the generational impact of parents who influence their kids to make “sensible” career choices because they made sensible career choices.
Are you a baby boomer with kids, counting the days until your retirement so you can start to live your passion? If so, it’s even more important for you to watch this video.
I was particularly touched by this comment posted by RD on the site:
About 18 months ago, my best friend passed away.. Three days before she died, we had our last conversation about how she’d lived and I asked her if she’d done what she came for. Her reply? ‘No Ruthie, if I’d known this was as long as I had to live I would’ve followed my heart.’ My friend Anna wanted to teach English in remote communities, travel the world and ‘make a difference’. What she actually did was play it safe (her words) with a job on the corporate team with the national telco. Every time I’m about to sell myself short or take what looks like the best option for someone else, I remember that conversation and reflect on how hard it must be to be three days from the end of my life wishing I’d done something different.
If that’s not a reason to follow your passion and encourage your kids to follow their passion, I don’t know what is.
Are you following your passion and doing work you love? Do you believe you can be successful by following your passion? Do you think your kids can? Share your thoughts below or on the facebook page.