Have you ever struggled with keeping your word on something? A diet, maybe? As a counselor, I have pondered this question many times. The question is, “Why is it we do some things passionately, while continually failing to do other things? The question of dieting is one of these areas. Many persons make a decision to diet for health reasons. They believe they must diet, and not just for vanity. The problem is that even though they may start off with the full intention of succeeding, they will too often fail along the way. Why? No passion.
Passion, as defined in the dictionary, means, “Strong and barely controllable emotion.” The second definition, relating to the “passion” of the Christ will not be included here. A “strong and barely controllable emotion” may sound like something hard to come by, but that is not true.
In one sense or another, everyone experiences a “passion” of sorts regularly. By this, I mean that once we decide we want to do something we believe will be satisfying or rewarding in some way, we get a “hit” of dopamine (a chemical produced by the brain), and this chemical “is important for many of our daily behaviors. It plays a role in how we move, for instance, as well as what we eat, how we learn and even whether we become addicted to drugs.”1 When we get this “hit” of dopamine, we focus on continuing the behavior which resulted in the dopamine reward. This will, if repeated often enough, become an “addiction” of sorts. By this, I mean that we train ourselves to continue the behavior and have a greater chance of success. In many cases, the result will be that the person develops a strong desire for the developed behavior and it will turn into a passion for them. Then, for them to continue doing the thing they desired, it will not be seen as a chore but a pleasure which will produce rewards. First from the dopamine “hit,” then from having achieved the desired goal.
As a counselor, I have often worked with people to help them learn to develop a passion for something they wanted to achieve or accomplish. This passion becomes the motivation they have been lacking all along. And, motivation is the key to success in practically anything. Without the proper motivation, too many people end up giving in or giving up before they have success. Once they fail at something, it makes the second time around (or third or more) that much harder. Not because what they are wanting to do is necessarily hard, but because they will lack the proper motivation.
Passion is what drives the runner in a marathon, the artist with a blank canvas, the musician who needs a new song, or the person who needs to lose a lot of pounds. Passion can carry you through the most difficult times, when even common sense and reality may not. Just because the doctor tells a fat person that they may die of a heart attack does not mean they will immediately start exercising. Food produces as much, and maybe more, dopamine “hits” than exercising for some people. So, the next time you are confronted with the need to accomplish what may seem difficult or impossible, find what about the hard thing to do may be pleasing or satisfying, and start the dopamine “hits” going.
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- https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/explainer-what-dopamine
