Put Your Heart In It: Make Your Passion Your Career
Do you have a burning passion in your heart that you wish you could be doing every day?
Do you ever find yourself stopping whatever it is you’re doing – and really wish you could figure out what it takes to make that dream come true?
How to Make Your Passion Your Profession
I know just how you feel
. I’ve been there – working a regular job that didn’t really satisfy my creativity or my goals – while wishing I could have done something with what I loved the most instead: fashion!
But I’m here to tell you that it’s totally possible.
If you’re truly passionate about something and want to succeed, here’s what you need to do:
Know that enjoying your passion isn’t enough
To start with – let’s get some of the tough stuff out of the way.
Sure you might really have fun doing whatever it is you’re passionate about.
You might love creating art, looking at the latest fashion trends, making delicious food… but have you got what it takes to make it a career?
Taking the step from enjoying a pastime and doing it to support yourself means thinking about all the extra hard work that has to go in.
If you love making food for example, taking your passion to the next step will mean learning to work under pressure, cooking larger amounts of food, juggling your time, sourcing ingredients and the right equipment… the list goes on!
If you’ve got the determination to stick it through the less enjoyable sides of your passion, then you’re on your way.
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Do your research
Before I became a hijab fashion stylist, I had to learn as much as I could about the industry, before I could really succeed.
And that meant I had to learn a lot!
Even though fashion had always been my big passion, it wasn’t something that I knew inside out, and there was a lot I had to learn in order to be taken seriously as a professional.
For example, learning how trend forecasting worked – so I could show the hottest looks that were about to become trends in the coming season.
Or understanding more about working with different colours – learning how to complement or clash them in the best way.
So how do you begin researching?
Easy.
With the internet, you can find out a huge amount of information.
From watching videos of other people doing something you can imagine doing yourself, looking at tutorials, reading blog posts and magazines… there’s a lot of information out there!
The more you learn about your passion, then the more confident you’ll feel about taking it further.
Network, network, network
Know the saying, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know”?
There’s definitely some truth in that.
Knowing people who work in the field related to your passion will help you get an entry into it.
It might be as simple as someone giving you some practical advice about their own experience, or they might even be able to put you in touch with people who could turn out to be potential employers or clients.
So how can you do this?
To start with, don’t be afraid to tell people what it is you want to do.
If you want to be a professional make up artist, tell people about it.
Make a website, a blog or business cards, and share them out wherever you go!
As more people become aware of what it is you’re planning to do, they’ll remember you the next time they need someone who works in that field, and tell others about you.
And from one referral, more will come.
The more you work to spread awareness about yourself as a professional – not just someone who enjoys doing something, then the closer you will be to making it your profession.
Be flexible
Lastly, be flexible about your goals.
If you want to work in the field of your passion but don’t have all the skills to do exactly what it is you want to do – then think outside the box.
You might be able to do something that is related to the field – even if it is different to what you had originally planned.
But once you’ve realised your dreams, you’ll see that it is totally worth it!
