I cannot find the author of this quote, but it's great, unless you are addicted to something. (smile)
I know that doing what I love is always more successful than forcing myself to do what other people think would be more profitable. This blog and my profession are two examples. When I entered college after high school I was "advised" to go into computers. That was where "it was at", the hot field where the jobs would be. I tried it. It didn't work. I didn't fit for me. Spending all day looking for a misplaced period or word was not my idea of satisfaction. I'm a people person. I'm a process person. I dropped out of college and went to work for several years until I had my "Aha!" experience. Oh yeah, I wanted to study psychology! I remember now. I am a person who is easily bored. And when I am bored, I get into trouble. Psychology was perfect. Studying human behavior is forever challenging and never boring. There are 6 billion people on this planet and I will never figure them all out. There is always a client in my office who has me flummoxed. There is always more work to do. There are always challenges. And this keeps me on fire.
Though the social services sector is a very hard way to make a living and I'll never make as much money or make it as easily as my friend the computer programmer, I'm content, I'm satisfied. My work means something. And meaning is a reward unto itself. Meaning is more important than money for me. When I work only for the money I get very depressed and cynical. I mean, what's the point? And I end up blowing all the money trying to "put" meaning in my life. Though I'll always have to live on a budget while my friend travels, gets massages and has her nails done, I think I am more content and have a greater inner peace than people who only follow the money. I know that I have touched lives, planted seeds, and perhaps, helped a few people along the way. Money is no substitute for that.
As this blog begins to thrive I realize that this, too, is the reason for any success it may have. I love the topic. I love to explore human behavior; why we do the things we do, why we think the way we do. This will never be completely answered in my lifetime. So following the advice of the quote in this article's title is working - at least for me.
Think about it. What do you love? What do you think about every single day? What gets you exicted? What can you never learn, do, see, get enough of?