On a scale of 0 – 10, how would you rate your personal passion on a daily basis? I’ve been addressing the importance for manager and leaders to ignite passion in their people. What if you yourself struggle to find enthusiasm?
“What do I do if I don’t have passion?” and “How do I sustain passion?” are two questions that often come up for my clients in coaching sessions.
At some point in your career, you may sense a creeping malaise. You’re no longer enthusiastic about the day ahead. When did your brilliant career become the daily grind? What happened to your passion at work?
“We hear a great deal of talk about the midlife crisis of the executive. It is mostly boredom.” ~ Peter Drucker, management expert
Let’s face it, after 20-30 years of all-too-familiar work, you’re good at your job, but you may not be learning or contributing as much. You might not feel challenged or particularly satisfied. Bosses can be unpleasant, your favorite project is scuttled, and work starts to stagnate.
Your position may feel like it’s reduced to reports, meetings, and difficult coworkers. When your job is no longer enjoyable or meaningful, your energy sags, motivation lags, tasks go undone, and you make mistakes. You think about switching jobs, but this presents additional risks, similar to changing seats on the Titanic.
Yet staying in a job that’s going nowhere, filled with mind-numbing work, can mean resigning yourself to a lack of growth and meaning. It doesn’t have to be that way. Not if you’re working with a coach.
Loss of passion is one of the primary reasons to use a coach. It may be time to explore work/life issues of purpose and meaning. Unfortunately, most of us dismiss these early symptoms and try to fix things on our own.
If you’re one of those who quickly dismisses creeping stagnation, pay attention. The longer you ignore the warning hints that your career lacks passion, the worse it can get. And the worse it can be for you to crawl out from under and reignite your energy. If you aren’t working with a coach, maybe you should. Maybe we should talk about it.
What’s been your experience with losing passion and a sense of purpose? I’d love to hear what’s happening where you work. You can contact me here or on LinkedIn.
