Passion Projects: A Labor of Love
Photo by Elaine Klonicki
“Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.”
~ Oprah Winfrey
Last week I turned the manuscript I’ve been editing over to our proofreader. It’s a book my sister has written titled Creative Caregiving Solutions: A Peaceful Approach to Navigating Your Relationship with Your Aging Loved One. Although I’m ecstatic to be at this point in the project, I’m also feeling a little bereft.
I absolutely love working with authors from the planning stage through their rough draft, and then helping them to mold and shape the manuscript into its final form. The creative process is a bit like sculpting marble—deciding what belongs in a work, what needs to be cut out, and in what order the material needs to be presented.
I’ve edited many nonfiction books in my life, and have helped to self-publish a few. The ones on relationships in particular become for me a labor of love because I’m so interested in the topic. Releasing them into the world feels a bit like sending a kid off to college. You’re happy for them and hope they’ll do well with the new people they meet, but you’ll miss them and your days won’t quite be the same without them.
To me a labor of love is a project that both excites and energizes you because it fulfills a mission you believe in. As any author will tell you, book creation can be long and laborious. But if you have passion for what you are doing, the time goes quickly, and when you encounter obstacles, you’re motivated to push through them.
Passion enables us to “maintain our connection with why we do what we do, to keep our focus sharp and to seek to serve others as well as ourselves through our work” says this Skills to Go article.
For me, the desire to serve others through my work is a driving force. I know my sister’s book will make an important difference to the family caregivers who read it. Having been a caregiver for both my parents at different times, I know the challenges inherent in the role. I suspect many of you do, too, given the huge number of people across the country who are caring for aging adults. In 2020 there were 42 million according to a report by the National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) and AARP.
Blogger Sarah Kristenson says people know instinctively when they are working on a passion project because they “love how it makes them feel and how it inspires them to tap into something bigger inside themselves.”
If you’re at a crossroads and are looking to find a passion project for yourself, Hannah Donato, guest author on desktime.com, suggests asking yourself these questions:
Who do I admire and what are they doing that I wish I did as well?
What fascinates me?
What am I curious about?
What websites, videos, or articles do I explore in my free time?
What activity have I always wanted to try?
She suggests letting your mind wander and jotting down as many answers as you can at first. Later you can narrow it down to the ones that spark the most joy for you.
If, after using her process, you’re still having a hard time figuring out something that gets you excited, check out Kristenson’s post where she shares dozens of potential ideas.
As for me, I’ve got some exciting projects to look forward to. I’ll be updating my book on psychotherapy and pitching some magazine article ideas. Several of you have asked me to publish a small gift book of my most popular blog posts so I’ve added that to my list.
Now that I’ve finally found my passion in life, I’m like the energizer bunny. It won’t be long until I jump into my next labor of love. I’d love to hear about your current projects, and your ideas for future ones!
Affectionately,
Elaine