Why Should You Pay Attention to What Excites You?

Do you know for sure what excites you? Today, I’d like to encourage you to take note of everything that lights you up.

So, let’s look at…

In addition to feeling like play, your passion also tends to light you up. While “follow your passion” can seem like elusive advice, many people find it easier to answer related questions, such as:

• What excites you?
• What makes you feel alive?
• What energizes you?
  

Different ways of phrasing what is essentially the same thing work for different people. That's why it makes sense to see which questions you can answer more easily than the dreaded: "So, what's your passion?"

For instance, as Tobias van Schneider explains: “Today I ask myself a new question: What excites me? What excites you? Personally, I find this question way easier to answer than trying to nail down my one and only passion.”

Maybe the reason someone is having a hard time finding their passion is that for them, “What is my passion?” is just not the best question to ask?

So, maybe we should all take a page out of The Door’s book and focus on what lights us on fire?🔥 🔥 🔥

Neither we nor our passion and purpose exists in a vacuum. So, it can also be interesting to ask other people variations of this question (“What excites you?/What lights you up?/What energizes you?” or "What do you care about?/What’s important to you?”).

Here are just some of the times when you can experiment with this:

• When you first meet someone
  As many people have pointed out, there are better questions we can ask someone we have just met than the typical “What do you do?” So, why not instead inquire: “What excites you?”
  
  
• When you start collaborating with someone
  I just did this today in a discussion with two people I might collaborate with. Asking this question helped us get clearer on what was important to each of us in the joint project we were considering.
  
  
• When you want to understand someone you know better
  The two people I just mentioned are actually friends of mine so I already know them fairly well. And yet, the simple question I asked (and, more importantly, their answer) still allowed me to understand them more deeply.

Grab a pen and paper. 📝Then, take a moment to go through the following process.

(If you want to get the most out of this or if you're afraid of getting stuck, get the "Taking Action Worksheets" and begin by filling those out.)

• Write down 1-3 activities that excite you
  Ask yourself “What excites me?/What lights me up?/What energizes me?” and write down your answers.
  For instance: “I feel a lot of energy when I’m helping someone solve a problem. I also feel excited when I get to write.”
  
  
• Write down 1–3 things that you care about
  Ask yourself “What do I care about?” or “What is important to me?” and write down your answers.
  For instance: “I really care about environmental sustainability. I also care about justice and fairness. And, I really care about animal rights.”
  
  
• Reflect on your answers to these 2 questions
  The first question is more connected to your passion, whereas the second question points you towards your purpose (there's a difference between passion and purpose ). Was it easier to answer one of these questions?
  
  For instance: “Hmm, I notice that my answers to the first question are more related to something I do, whereas my answers to the second one are related to topics I care about. That’s interesting to notice. I also think it was easier for me to answer the second question.”
  
  
• Bonus: Ask at least one person a variation of this question (“What excites you ?/What lights you up?/What energizes you?”) or “What do you care about? What’s important to you?”)

If you find it hard to connect to your passion and purpose, begin to take note of everything that lights you up. This will help you gather more information on what you feel passionate about.