Passion and Persistence

“Entrepreneurs are ordinary people who do extraordinary things.  They take everyday ideas and give them some magic.  You don’t need a lot of experience or resources to be an entrepreneur.  You need passion and persistence” (Allen, Ph.D., 2001, p. 10).

The notion of passion coupled with persistence makes a lot of sense to me.  I have been passionate about many things in my life, but not necessarily persistent.  I have not always been sure how to define what I was really passionate about.  I had general ideas about how I could impact society…I had many ideas to make a difference.

For instance, I love animals; especially big cats.  I always admired Tippi Hedren for her efforts to help endangered exotic big cats by the founding of Shambala in 1983.  I have often said, if I were ever to come into some real money, I would do the same thing as Tippi.

Another dream of mine was to be a talk show host like Oprah.  Again, I would tell myself, if I had the money she has, I too could make a positive difference in the lives of others.  When you think about it, she started out just like everyone else in her industry.  She worked very hard to get to where she is now and more importantly, she was persistent.

What I realize now is that it’s up to me to create the opportunities I seek.  I do not have to be financially wealthy to live a rich and fulfilling life.  The important thing is to maintain my passion and remain persistent in my endeavors.  I also realize that I can not do it all by myself.  Networking with others who share my passion also enables me to remain persistent and stay the course.

Finally, I realize that being passionate about something is wonderful.  It is even better if I am able to develop a mission and set goals around my passion.   For me, I must stay focused and persistent in order to develop an organization devoted to achieving my goals.

Kathleen Allen, PhD., (2001). Entrepreneurship for Dummies. Wiley Publications