In the past few weeks I’ve made it a point to ask both clients and friends what makes them happy. What are they passionate about? There has been a shocking amount of similar answers. What is concerning is that answer is “I don’t remember.”
How does losing what your passionate about and/or what you love to do happen? How does anyone forget what it is that makes them happy? The answer is this…”slowly.” Slowly we lose touch with what it is that WE want by daily accommodation of others. Sometimes it is our family, friends, co-workers, boss, etc. Whom we accommodate is not as important to ‘why’ we accommodate them. It is a signal that somewhere along the way their importance surpassed your importance.
Do we have to accommodate the boss. Most likely if we want to get paid. But can we broker a scenario that isn’t all or nothing? Yes, yes that indeed is possible. People don’t however because they feel uncomfortable asking.
Next time you feel uncomfortable asking for a compromise to retain some of what you enjoy, love and/or are passionate about think about how much easier it is to ask, than to forget who you are. A few minutes of feeling uncomfortable, whether it is with your boss, friends, family, etc. is well worth the lifetime of enjoying what you do. I certainly don’t mind 30 minutes of discomfort knowing it will result in staking claim to who I am. What about you?