Passion Projects, a Science

the Renaissance moments of life are passion projects.

The following, are bite sized pieces of advice on elements that will carry you through this journey full of hardships and never ending fulfillment!

1. Discipline

Passion and inspiration often go hand in hand. Although our passion is something that may stay vibrant as anything, the will and determination we have often suffer when the temporary fuel of inspiration is gone. This is when the power of discipline comes in. Everyday we are bombarded by obligations, we tend to an unlimited amount of responsibilities. All of these pressures are bound to get to us at an emotional and mental level. Recognizing this is the key. When inspiration diminishes, discipline comes in at full force. Discipline does not depend on feeling, it rather sticks to a solid vision. For a vision to be solid it must have clearly elaborated objectives, and each objective an outline or algorithm for completion. Feelings are important and they are maintained and enriched through discipline.

2. Agenda

Create an agenda for the blocks of time you are willing to give up to work on passion projects. This is a sacrifice, you are setting aside time you could use doing anything else, to create something that is not necessarily going to generate you any profit. The act of writing down an agenda- on the phone, on paper, on the wall, on the mirror, in a way brings this abstract concept to life. Let your passion project become part of your daily routine, even if you have only five minutes to spare in a day. With the agenda, with steps from start to finish, you can argue that the work is done- the rest is the work of discipline. The steadfastness that discipline forms in your mind can allow you to think more creatively, and even at a deeper level than you would if you just followed a spark of inspiration when it happens. Inspiration does happen, the frequency at which it does can vary- it may come every day, or every two weeks, or every four years. Discipline, however, can happen everyday and depends entirely on you. At one point in life, all the knowledge and richness that you have acquired through discipline has the potential of being your daily inspiration.

3. Accountability

Pressure and stress can be good at times, sharing a project with close friends creates accountability. Working on something independently is hard to complete when you are alone. If you choose to work by yourself, you can create accountability with yourself by writing expectations of yourself by the end of any specific deadline. By the end of the month, I will have accomplished x, y and z. Make these expectations visible, the famous saying "Out of sight, out of mind" is the predicament of our hectic and often overwhelmed routines. For this reason, you have to be extra intentional with projects that start and depend on you, and your individual efforts. Make your goals visible, foster accountability with others.

4. Research

Prepare each facet with responsibility and respect. With any project, research is a necessary step. Create solid foundations when you are building something. If you expect to create something credible and reputable you must be prepared. By research I don't necessarily mean that you must focus on looking to other things to try to copy or even inspire yourself. To explain it through an analogy- if you are working to write a book, the research I would suggest would be that of writing preparation, enrich your vocabulary, perfect your grammar, perfect your sentence structures, polish the skills needed to carry out this project. This process may take years to accomplish, and as we live in an ever growing and developing society, this process may never end. There is always something new to learn, something new to add.

5. Material Supplies

Wait if you have to. If you are lacking the materials necessary, wait if you have to- unless you want to get extremely creative and carry out this entire task on your shoulders. As elemental and simple as it may sound, the right tools make our lives exponentially easier. Maybe you are starting out and you are getting creative with your methods and making your own tools; this is not a bad thing, however, keep in mind at some point you will need to work on getting the right tools- the right equipment. I say this truly because your life has to become easier, you need the pressure off your shoulders, you need the energy that this work requires. Whatever lessens the weight of stress should always be welcome.

6. Mentorship

Share and develop, online, with friends. Our work is our legacy, it shouldn't be confined to just us, mentorship provides a way to share our methods and techniques with the world. Create a blog, a youtube channel, an instagram or a twitter account for your passion project. This is a productive way to document your efforts and it also helps with the accountability factor. In future days you will always be able to refer back to the times when you were working on that starting project. It creates a memory and it can be helpful to others that are finding their own way through their independent passion projects.

In and throughout all of this I encourage you to have fun and be confident in your endeavors. Going after abstract dreams with determination and solid preparation is for the most courageous people, given that you have no sponsorship or promotion behind you. I commend everyone on their journeys of renaissance!

Much love,

Hefzi Molina