They say that when you do what you love, the rest follows.  Our hundreds of interviews with those who have leaped fully and prosperously into their passions (aka “Passioneers”) attest to this quote.  Each week, we summarize the insights and wisdom of these Passioneers into tips, quotes, and affirmations, that you can receive weekly…all spam-free, simple and self-empowering. 

If you or someone you know would like these weekly tips, please sign up via this Constant Contact link or by emailing us at passioneers AT yahoo.com.  Below is our fifth Passioneering Tip for 2010, and we’ll be sharing these every week to subscribers on Tuesday mornings.  Happy Passioneering!

Passioneering Tip #5

 …It is not as scary as it appears. You’ll plan, but at some point you need to make a leap and have faith in yourself and your abilities to make your dreams come true. I always felt that if someone else did it, I can do it too.

 ~Passioneer Brian Peters

Founder, NoDebtTravel.com

Quote

A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.

~ G. Patton

Affirmation

This week, I make time to plan my upcoming steps…AND I keep taking the necessary leaps, boldly and courageously.

Last week, we spotlighted 16 tips from our Passioneer(tm) interviews about how to leap fully into what you love, as you serve others in the world.  This week, we’re continuing to share tips from our bold, talented interviewees, with the intention to inspire others who may be scared or discouraged about their own leap. 

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway. 

• Nearly all of our Passioneers cited courage as a critical element for leaping fully into what they love.  For them, courage is NOT the absence of fear, but rather the moving forward REGARDLESS of fear.  What a huge difference!  A great book on this topic by Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.
• Passioneers have a relationship with their challenges of “Bring it on!”   They welcome challenges as opportunities to deflate their egos, toughen their skin, AND open their hearts.  Rather than avoid challenges, Passioneers embrace them fully.
• Making the courageous leap into your passions requires a strong faith – knowing that you are supported by a giving, abundant Universe.  Remember that the Universe (or whatever you call your higher power) IS on your side, even when it doesn’t seem like it.
• The Passioneers who we interviewed are bulldogs when it comes to perseverence:  they do not give up and are fiercely tenacious in moving forward regardless of their circumstances.  Vince Lombardi said, “Winners never quit, and quitters never win!” (Other Lombardi quotes)
• Successes are always right around the corner, even if you cannot see or believe them yet.   

It Takes a Village to Raise a Passioneer.

• The concept of rugged individualism is dead when it comes to unleashing your passions.   If you think that you have to go it alone, think again.  Passioneer Vitamin C = Collaboration, connection, cooperation, and community. Your booster shot for thriving!
• The most successful Passioneers create powerful support networks that call them into greatness, challenge their comfort zones, and believe in them through thick and thin.  So, go build an “A Team” of cheerleaders who believe in you 200%, when no one else will.  The first step to building your team is to ASK.  The second step?  Be ready to RECEIVE!
• Passioneers also proactively build a “B” team of cheerleaders who they actively recruit to their A team.  They have a positive state of mind to attract and grow strong supporters.
• Build upon your strengths, rather than struggle to strengthen your weaknesses.  Delegate to experts in areas which are not your strengths or your passions.
• Stop renting out mental real estate to naysayers.  The more that you resist the “dream dashers,” the more that they will persist.  What you resist persists.  A great video on this topic.

Do What You Love, Not Just What You’re Good At.

• How do you know if you are following your true passions?  When in doubt, ask yourself, could I do and be this for the rest of my life..and not get paid?  If your answer is  unequivocally “yes,” then you are on the right track.  Or try the Passion Test.  Marsha Sinetar’s book, Do What You Love; the Money Will Follow, is excellent.
• Your passions point to your purpose – that is, why you’re on the planet at this time.  Pay attention to them and give them space in your life.
• Passion = contagion.   When you are on fire about something in your life, you are contagious and unstoppable. 
• Some Passioneers unleash one passion, solely and fully, during their life, while others are “serial Passioneers,” who pursue many different ones.  There is no right or wrong path to pursue your passion. 

Happy Passioneering!

During this year, we have interviewed over 200 bold, talented individuals who have leaped fully into what they love, as they serve others in the world – we call them Passioneers ™.  Our intention is to inspire those who are feeling scared or discouraged about their own leap into service.  Based upon our inteviews so far, we have synthesized the following passioneering tips, and will be blogging on them, and many others, each week in 2010.   If you  have any tips or know of any Passioneers who would like to share their story in our blog, please send us their contact information.

Be A Visionary.

• Dream big.  To create a bigger life, you must have bigger dreams.  Without a vision, the people perish.  (Proverbs 29:18)
• Cordon off at least one focused, quiet hour, each month, for the visioning process.  If you Google “life visioning tools,” you’ll see lots of great visioning tools.   We highly recommend using Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith’s approach. 
• Share your life’s vision with those you trust, and watch how much faster that it grows!
• Keep your vision front and center, where it can inspire you everyday.  A vision journal or vision board is a great tool for this purpose. Check out vision journaling workshops by Robbi Firestone. 

If You Fail to Plan, You Plan to Fail.

• Create a business plan, even if it’s on the back of a napkin.  Richard Gabel’s tips on this: http://bit.ly/2102E
• What gets written down gets done.  Plain, simple, if not easy.  Journaling is a great tool for this.  Or try writing down the top three things you must get done each day  on an index card; let that be your day’s focus.
• As with your vision, share your business plan with others for input, ideas, and support.
• Try our complimentary PowerLeaps LLC Express Business Plan.

If You Believe, You’re Halfway There.

• Napoleon Hill said “What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” (more quotes from Napoleon Hill).
• If you don’t believe in your vision, very few others will.
• Even on those days when you really don’t believe in your vision,  try faking it until you make it.  It’s amazing how contagious “acting as if” can be!
• Faith grows over time, one demonstration at a time – kind of like a stairway that you climb, with each step being a small success.  Rome was certainly not built in one day.

Just Do It!

• My good friend Pete DiSantis says, “Do is half of done.“  Talk is cheap, and analysis can cause paralysis!  The boldest, most successful Passioneers move forward regardless of their circumstances.
• Take baby steps, no matter how small they are.  In the midst of feeling overwhelmed and stuck, your taking even ONE small step forward will jump start your inspiration and momentum.  A great article on this approach.
• There is no right or wrong way to express your passions, so avoid comparing yourself to others, especially Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, celebrities, your next door neighbor, etc., etc.  You get the point…
• Explore and experiment.  Take some risks and try on different approaches.  Most importantly, have FUN!!

 Happy Passioneering!