My Passion

I don't know what I am good at. I don't know what my passion is. This is something I have been thinking about for the past few weeks. What prompted this line of thought is my reading of Good to Great by Jim Collins. He details these companies who were nothing more than bottom feeders of their industry but through certain things at a well defined transition point became industry leaders and sustained those results for over fifteen straight years. One thing that made these companies great is something called their Hedgehog Concept. He and the people he did research with came up with this idea from a story(you can read the book for it) but came to this conclusion from it. "Hedgehogs simplify a complex world into a single organizing idea, a basic principle or concept that unifies and guides everything...For a hedgehog, anything that does not somehow relate to the hedgehog idea holds no relevance" He goes on to say, "A Hedgehog Concept is not a goal to be the best, a strategy to be the best, an intention to be the best, a plan to be the best. It is an understanding of what you can be the best at. The distinction is absolutely crucial."

Being halfway decent at a lot of things is something I am great at but I do not have something that I am the 'best' at. I don't have that goal out in front of me to which all the lines and paths and stories of my life converge. It is sort of disheartening to never be able to excel. Maybe it comes out of being disorganized in my life, but in reality, it's probably because I am afraid. Being the best at something means being held to a different standard. There are new sets of expectations if you are the best at something. That line of thought has hamstrung me throughout my life. It is a crippling thing, being afraid. I don't want other people to be let down if I don't live up to their expectations. The thought of 'rocking the boat' or causing someone to be uncomfortable or chasing someone away strikes fear into my heart and when that happens my actions freeze. My motivation drains away and I remain mediocre. That is probably a pretty accurate word to use to describe my life so far, mediocre with a few high points.

So where is my Hedgehog Concept? What is my goal? What is that one point out before me that I need to focus on right now? That is something I cannot answer right now. My hope is that through this self-revealing experiment I can come to something that I will love.

Thanks for reading you three! Please, let me know if you want me to talk about something, I need ideas. Remember, I run out of those pretty fast and I want to keep this thing going. My next post is going to be on the question 'Why,' LeBron, or the World Cup. (Probably the latter) Have a great day and don't think too badly of me.