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Go After What You Love

I love the expression “Go for it.” We can’t expect to find what we
love without reaching out for new, exciting experiences. We have
approximately 60,000 thoughts a day. That’s the good news. The sad
news
is that 95 percent of the time, we think the same old thoughts. We’ll
live
in a narrow frame of reference unless we choose to search, seek, and
fi nd
new things to love. The ancient Greek philosopher Sophocles taught
us,
“Look and you will find it—what is unsought will go undetected.” We
can expose ourselves to an infinitely vast range of possibilities. We
should
never wait for good things to come to us. We can go exploring and
we’ll
always find a great number of things to be excited about.
What are some of the ways you uncover and discover new interests,
passions, and even obsessions? What are some of the things you
love?
How did you discover them? Emerson believed that when we have
arrived at the question, the answer is already near. Question
everything
and you will discover what you are looking for and will deepen your
knowledge. You might discover that you love roses and want to grow
your own. If no one ever promised you a rose garden, you can choose
to
go after what you love. Where do you begin? You can read up on
roses.
You can visit different gardens and see what you most adore—what
colors, what scents, what varieties thrive best in your climate and soil.
By
asking gardeners questions and listening carefully to their responses,
and

by careful observation, you will be able to go to a nursery, buy some


rose
bushes, and properly plant them. You’re not going to be able to wake
up
on a beautiful summer morning, with the dew still on the ground, and
run out barefoot and see the splendid beauty of your rose garden
unless
you choose to make it happen.
I’ve discovered that once we’re excited about something—anything—
we’ll naturally be attracted to helpful people who are experts or
professionals or avid amateurs who love to share their knowledge.
Through our mutual interest in art or music or bird watching or tennis,
we find great stimulation in our time spent together.
Your passions can lead to professional enrichment as well. Thomas
Edison had an ingenious perception about light. He passionately
pursued
his interest, experimenting—being wrong 99 percent of the time. But
he
was able to invent the light bulb and forever changed the way we live
our
lives. Sometimes we unveil what we love by admitting what we don’t
love. I admit I do not love opera. I’ve been exposed to opera all of my
life,
beginning with my grandmother, who wanted to be an opera singer. I
loved her, but I couldn’t bear hearing her sing. Opera aside, I came to
love
many other types of classical music, and I often listen to classical
music on
the radio when I’m at my desk.
I love the ballet and am inspired when I experience a fi ne
performance.
When I go to a concert and hear beautiful music, because I’m so
visual, I
miss the beauty of the ballerinas: their colorful costumes, the stage
set. It
isn’t as interesting to me to watch a musician play his or her
instrument
as it is to watch the grace and harmony of great dancers as I hear the
magnificent music. Some people would prefer to go to a ball game
than
to the ballet.
When people tell me they haven’t found their passion, I suggest that
they read ancient philosophy, which encourages taking pleasure in a
variety of different things, choosing the ones that we are the best fi t
for,
and thus identifying certain interests that we want to pursue over
other
possibilities.

Most of us agree that loving what we’re doing, loving what we see,
hear, smell, taste, and touch increases our sense of happiness and
pleasure.
I have a friend who has recently taken up quilting. In the community
in Florida where Barbara lives, she met an expert quilter at her book
club. She was invited to go to one of her classes. What did she have to
lose? Barbara enjoys sewing and loves color and pretty textiles. From
the
minute she was exposed to the idea of actually creating her own
quilts,
she was hooked.
A friend sold his boat because his family had so many interests,
including
a daughter who is a nationally ranked tennis player. Life changed and
he
wanted to be there for his daughter, to coach her in her tournaments.
He
discovered that when he was at home, he loved to do woodworking—
something not possible on a boat. Garry now makes furniture in the
heated garage of his Wisconsin house and gives his elegant pieces to
his
grandchildren. How did he discover his love of woodworking? Garry
believes having the boat for so long, with all its beautiful woodwork,
made him appreciate fine woods and excellent workmanship. But had
he not sold his boat to pursue other interests, he might not have had
the
opportunity to discover this new passion.
Whether you pursue golf, tennis, fishing, sailing, painting, cooking, or
playing the flute, whatever you choose, you will put in long patient
hours
of experimenting, perfecting your skills, sharpening your tools,
learning
as you go. We will continue to find new things we love, and we’ll
pursue
them throughout the course of our lifetimes. Aristotle wisely reminds
us,
“It is the nature of desire not to be satisfi ed.”
When we choose to live a good life, we will make choices in every area
of our existence that will improve our well-being. Robert Louis
Stevenson
wrote “To know what you prefer … is to have kept your soul alive.” Let
us see what we love so we may know our spirits better.
Many intellectual, well-meaning people have not kept their souls alive
because they have been afraid to express themselves honestly. We
are
all creative because we are creating our lives, choice by choice. We
have

to have an intimate connection with the choices we make about


people,
places, and things. There is no area of our lives that we cannot make
richer
or fuller. We’ve barely tapped the surface of our human potential.
Try different things until something clicks. One thing will defi nitely
lead to another. There’s no such thing as a person with too many
interests.
We become interesting when we’re engaged in things we love. The
good,
big, fun life is waiting for us. Take pleasure in discovering what truly
excites you, and then go after all your stimulating discoveries. Watch
the
universe come toward you as though you’re a magnet of good energy.

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