Passion Sells

I was working with my professional coach a few years ago during a time when things were going a little crazy in my life: I had way too many things on the go and some parts had to go, or at least take a back seat.

After I had outlined everything that I was doing, or was attempting to do, she looked at me, with a smile, and said “Well, that was easy.  I know exactly what you should do.”  She then outlined a plan that made perfect sense.    

“How did she know, I asked? She said she heard and saw the passion.”

When an audience, of any size, is listening to you deliver a message – selling, influencing, educating or whatever else – your passion can make or break the message.  If you are passionate about the topic, it will come out very clearly and people will believe. It is very hard to fake passion.  If you are passionate, your authenticity will show through clearly and people will jump on board.

Passion sells.

I don’t know about you, but in my professional life, I am attracted to passionate people.  I will almost always get excited about the message.

So how do you get passionate about something?

This is not something you can go to school to learn and it is certainly not something you can purchase at the corner store.  Frankly, the topic, or idea, or object or whatever, will strike your internal passion and excitement… or not.  That’s it.

The best advice I can give you is this.  If you are not passionate about your job or work or subject matter area, maybe you need to consider something else.  To become passionate about something, you need to believe in the end result, in the benefits your topic or area of expertise will deliver, in the good it, or you, will do for others. 

Yes, that ‘benefit’ could be the financial rewards to you. Some people can be very passionate about the work they do because of the financial return it will deliver back. I would not see it as fair to judge what benefits are good or bad. 

Regardless, you will find the passion when you find the good news: for you, or others.

Once you find that passion, it is a lot easier to get them to believe and to jump on board.