Finding your passion is a big question that many people ask themselves. It can be difficult to figure out what you want from your life if you don’t know what drives you. This list of books about finding your passion will help answer some of those questions and point you in the right direction!
The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything by Ken Robinson
In his book “The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything,” Ken Robinson encourages readers to take a step back and answer some questions about themselves. He suggests that people try three strategies – find your element, find the right environment, and find the right fit.
“Running a marathon is often cited as an example of something that cannot be forced. You either have the ability or you do not.”
“There are many potential elements, and finding one’s own is a highly personal process. It requires deep introspection and the willingness to embrace the journey… it is a quest for a unique expression of our essential nature.”
“People often overestimate what they can do in an hour or a day, and underestimate what they can achieve in a year or a decade.”
In this essay, Ken Robinson discusses how our education system stifles creativity among children. It also talks about the importance of creativity to society. In short, individuals need to be more creative if we want our world to progress technologically.
“The real question is how to make the education system ignite invention, rekindle imagination, and instill a sense of purpose.”
“Once you have found your element, it becomes your vocation. You commit rational suicide because you realize that what you are best at is not something that can rationalize or justify itself in terms of making money or achieving power; its value lies in the contribution you make to other people’s lives through what you do.”
The Last Lecture is a book written by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow
It is written as an autobiography of Pausch, and it includes his views on life, death, and family.
“I realized we had two options: We could either spend time together complaining about the final few weeks of my life, or we could make the best of them. I knew which option Alice would choose.”
“My old professor from CMU, Randy Pausch, wrote a book called The Last Lecture. He and I were good friends in graduate school and later at Disney: We used to talk about how if one of us ever got sick and was going to die, we should call each other and give the Last Lecture over the phone. We had a special ringtone for these calls: Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, which I called ‘The Ode to Joy’ — it’s his only indisputably great piece, and one of my favorite pieces of music.”
“Everyone is born with a sense of curiosity and a desire to learn: new things help us grow. Not knowing all the answers helps us stay motivated, and it forces us out of our comfort zones to find them. And every question we answer leads us on to questions that we didn’t know existed. But if you stop asking questions, if you are no longer interested in learning, then it isn’t too long before you start dying.”
As someone who had gone through depression herself, Chodron sees suffering as an inevitable part of life. She encourages readers to acknowledge that suffering is not the end of the world and that it is possible for us to overcome it.
“It is not the events themselves that cause our suffering, but rather our thoughts about those events. The intensity of our emotional pain comes from how we interpret what happens.”
Chodron encourages people to turn adversity into a chance for growth and embrace the moment so they can handle whatever life throws at them.
“At the root of our situation is a fear that we will never be able to let go and live with awareness.”
12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos is a self-help book by Jordan B. Peterson,
He tackles various issues plaguing our society, such as the rise in depression and social anxiety disorders, the prevalence of certain mental illnesses in Western countries, and the lack of meaning felt by people today.
“People suffer because they are trapped in their stories. They suffer because they believe their stories are the truth. If you know how to look, you can see that everyone is broken. Everyone is hurting. And most importantly: everyone is hurting because they are stuck in their stories.”
“Patience, more than anything else, will help you find a partner who’s right for you. Because it’s your values that matter. And if you don’t know what yours are yet, then no one can tell you whom to love. Once you know who you are, and what you stand for, then your path becomes clearer.”
Jeffrey Dean Morgan plays Clay in the film adaptation of this novel. It is adapted into a screenplay by Alexander Dinelaris Jr.
“You can’t always control what happens to you but you can control how it affects you. And that’s the whole game.”
Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World is a self-help book written by Bob Goff.
In this book, Goff discusses how we can be unafraid of failure and seek adventure as we embrace the unknown.
“Instead of handing them our maps and plans and directions to happiness and success, we must start listening for God’s voice as He whispers His dreams and desires into our hearts.”
The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself is a self-help book written by Michael A. Singer.
This book discusses how we can use meditation to rid ourselves of pain and suffering and achieve inner peace and happiness.
“Freedom is the ability to see that there is a perspective other than our own.”
Man’s Search for Meaning – Viktor E. Frankl, William J. Winslade, Harold S. Kushner
In his book, Viktor Frankl discusses how we can find meaning in life even during the most difficult times. He talks about how he and other prisoners could survive the Holocaust by finding meaning and purpose in their stories and experiences.
“The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstance.”
When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times – Pema Chodron
In this book, Pema Chodron discusses how we can work with difficult emotions like anger and fear as they arise. We can develop patience as we learn not to take everything so personally and let go of judgment. It is a Buddhist approach to dealing with stress, anxiety, and unhappiness.
“We spend our lives resisting the fact that everything changes. We believe that if we just do things right, then the outcome will be okay, even though everyone around us dies… Our resistance causes suffering.”
Love Yourself As Your Life Depends On It – Kamal Ravikant
This book is about how you can save yourself by learning to love yourself entirely in all your glory and imperfections. It is a self-help book that shows us what it means to own our lives by owning ourselves, learning to treat ourselves with the utmost kindness, and living out loud without fear of judgment or failure.
“When something bad happens to you, how do you speak about it? When good things happen to you, how do you speak about it? What are the habitual ways you speak to yourself when things are going your way… When things go wrong, are there habitual ways that you blame something or someone else for what’s happening?”
Find Your Passion: 25 Questions You Must Ask Yourself – Henri Junttila
This self-help book goes over 25 questions you should be asking yourself to help you discover your passion. It discusses how we can find happiness and success by learning what truly matters.
“When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears.”
Do the Work: Overcome Resistance and Get Out of Your Way – Steven Pressfield, Seth Godin
In his book, Steven Pressfield discusses how we resist the work to be done. We can get in our way and sabotage ourselves from doing the work that will fulfill us. This is a self-help book about breaking through resistance so you can live your best life.
“Doing what you love is the key to having abundance in your life.”
Miracles Now: 108 Life-Changing Tools for Less Stress, More Flow, and Finding Your True Purpose – Gabrielle Bernstein
Gabrielle Bernstein discusses how we can find happiness by embracing miracles. We have to be open to receiving help from all sources as new opportunities arise daily. This is a self-help book about spirituality, gratitude, and miracles.
“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
The Crossroads of Should and Must: Find and Follow Your Passion – Elle Luna
In this self-help book, Elle Luna discusses how we often feel like choosing between what others are expecting of us, what we want to do, and what we feel called to do. We have to follow our musts- our passions that come from deep within. This book is about how you can figure out your path by following your heart.
“If you’re staying in a job because ‘it pays well,’ ask yourself: do you feel like a precious resource that deserves to be cared for and well-compensated, or like a cheap commodity that can be easily replaced?”
The Happiness of Pursuit: Finding the Quest That Will Bring Purpose to Your Life – Chris Guillebeau
In this book, Chris Guillebeau discusses how we can find happiness in our lives by following our passions and doing what we love. We have to break free from the traditional idea of a 9-5 job to pursue meaningful work that makes us happy. This book is about pursuing your dreams, creating a life on your terms, and thinking bigger.
“It’s up to you how you decide to live… You have the freedom to take your life in any direction it might go.”
Unwrapping Your Passion: Creating the Life You Truly Want – Karen Putz, Janet Attwood, Debra Poneman
In this book, authors Karen Putz, Janet Attwood, and Debra Poneman discuss how we can find happiness by starting a new project or finding a new passion. We have to take time for ourselves and learn how to unwrap our passions to create the life we want.
“There is an active ingredient in your life that you can control, and that’s called your intention.”
You should discover what makes you happy, then go do it no matter what anyone else has to say.”
One thing you must do is take risks. Nobody ever accomplished anything worthwhile by sitting on the sidelines. No matter what obstacles are thrown in your path, keep moving forward.”
“Those who can fully commit themselves to their passion are the ones that change our world.”
“When you can’t ignore something anymore, that’s when changes begin to happen in your life.”
“Your dreams know where they want to take you. Why don’t you?”
you must discover what your passion is so you can live an extraordinary life on this planet.”
You must go on the journey of finding out who you are and what makes you happy. Then, could you do it? No excuses.”
ou should do what you love – because that is the only true way to live a happy, fulfilling life.”
“If you’re not following your passion then you are wasting your time.”
You must take action and go after something you want in this world. If not, then you will forever be living a mediocre life.
“You don’t need anybody’s permission to create your own life.”
You should find what you love to do, discover it, embrace it, enjoy it… If there’s something that you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t had the courage or whatever else is holding you backstop making excuses and do it.”
“You must get rid of all the things that aren’t making you happy and go get what you truly want in life. It’s not going to come to you by chance, but by pure tenacity and sheer willpower.”
Conclusion
When you think of passion, what do you imagine? Fulfilling your life’s purpose or finding the thing that excites and energizes you? If this interests you, then keep reading to find out about 14 books about finding your passion. With these resources in hand, it won’t be hard for you to figure out where all of your energy will go! So if anything is holding back from pursuing a new hobby or taking up an old one again, get over it-these are some great reads waiting for someone like YOU. What book appeals most to your sense of curiosity and adventure? Check them out today!
