Finding Your Businesses’ Passion

There’s an old adage “do something you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”. Certainly that’s true on an individual level, but what about your business? Chances are you started your business because you were passionate about something. As the business got off the ground you probably had to do things you weren’t as passionate about. Let’s face it, when you’re a small business your the owner, operator, bookkeeper, janitor, salesman, and everything else under the sun. If you’re being honest, you probably weren’t super stoked to do all of those jobs, but doing it allowed you to do what you were passionate about.

Regardless of the size of your business, you undoubtedly have things you are passionate about. Hopefully your product or service is the biggest thing you’re passionate about. However, we all know that even if you are doing what you love day in and day out, it can sometimes be a grind. You’ve got to find ways to keep it fresh, and make it fun. You need to do something to stoke your fires and keep you enthusiastic about what you’re doing.

For us, we’ve always worked with some organizations that we were excited about, such as the Advocacy Network for Kids, The District, and The Art Center. These projects allow us to take some creative risks, shake up the daily routine, and are a helpful reminder of why we started doing this in the first place. We chose those organizations because they are things we care about outside of work, so when we can put out skillset to use benefiting them, it’s even better!

About two years ago I first heard the term “passion project”. Everybody has them at an individual level and as a business. It’s those things that you are passionate about. It can be called volunteer work, pro bono, or any other number of names, but I really like passion project. It’s what provides that fuel and makes it easier to get over the days that may be more of a hurdle.

As I’ve had more and more opportunities to volunteer over the years I’ve found that I always seem to get more than I give. While this may not be true of the bottom line for a business, there’s something to be said for stoking the fires, inspiring the team, and making the work fun. I think what you’ll find is that it inadvertently does impact your bottom line by making everyone more productive.

Hopefully your business already has a passion project (or multiple projects). If not, consider adopting a passion project or two for your team to work on and watch the inspiration spread. I promise, you won’t have to look too far to find worthy organizations that fit well with your company!