I love this question from a listener – What do you do when the passion is gone?
Hi Dan,
I’m 33 years old, and I’ve been drawing cartoons and comics for as long as I can remember. It just recently became a career after I completed two full length graphic novels in the past few years. My mission statement for my work has always been “To tell stories that are as fun to read as they are to make”, but it’s becoming something dreadful that I don’t look forward to anymore.
It breaks my heart to feel that way towards something I’ve done since my childhood, and I can’t see how my continuing to create comics and stories is something that brings lasting value to other people’s lives.
Should I let this chapter of my life close? Or is there something I’ve missed that will reinvigorate my hope for this to be a fulfilling career? Joshua
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Thanks so much for your great question:
Recognize the “seasons” of life – especially for creative people.
You’re really not likely to find one thing and do only that for the next 30 years. You’re more likely to want change every 3-5 years. If you know that about yourself you can anticipate the change – be open to it and be looking for new opportunities. Don’t beat yourself up – get excited about the changes that are coming. I know I’m a 3 year guy. Even if things are going very well, if they are predictable and moving well on their own – I will start to sabotage them because I’ll become bored and eager for a new challenge.
Entrepreneurs don’t just find one thing and do it forever. They are constantly looking for the next opportunity. They are likely to take components of what they were doing previously into their next adventure but the application is likely to look much different.
You may move from full length graphic novels to doing:
- 30-second commercials
- the very popular whiteboard animations
- or into the growing Manga space
Typically our “divine discontent” opens the door for the next season in our lives. The loss of your passion my be the seed of what will increase your enthusiasm and income.
If the passion is diminishing, or gone – recognize you are a different person than you were 10 years ago – or 5 years ago – or even 1 year ago. Take a fresh look at yourself and start from there. Reevaluate your (1) Skill & Abilities, (2) Personality Traits, (3) Values, Dreams and Passions. Once you are clear again on those, you can then start looking for the best application that embraces those in a way that puts you on an exciting career path for the next 3-5 years.
I feel this one seriously! I had been writing for myself and posting online for years, then my dream came true and I got a book contract and suddenly I was a PUBLISHED author. I even won an award and made some money from the book. But I was miserable. I HATED promoting and dealing with all the pressure to blog and facebook and twitter. All the joy was gone and my inspiration took a hike, leaving me desperate to keep trying to achieve my goal of full-time writer without a shred of muse to fuel it. I felt guilty all the time about not writing, not promoting, not capitalizing on my new-found inroads into publishing.
It was awful. Instead of feeling like a success in making my goals reality, I felt like a failure, as if I’d been given the opportunity and dropped the ball. The message I felt like I was receiving was that if my book failed, it would not be because I was a bad writer, it would be because I was a bad promoter. Therefore, it was doomed to fail and all my hopes for being a full-time writer were blown right off the bat because I just could not face the task of endless promotion. It has taken me several years and a few more, smaller projects to feel like I might have a chance to write again like I once did. During that time, I tried to just quit writing altogether, thinking that maybe I was done. But the drive kept at me, even when I tried to ignore it due to lack of passion.
I disagree with Dan that maybe Joshua is just ready for the next thing because of one thing he says: “I can’t see how my continuing to create comics and stories is something that brings lasting value to other people’s lives.” This sounds to me not like a change in passion but a felt lack of significance, as if his creative activities aren’t paying off in his life they way he felt as though they should. Joshua, have you lost faith in the medium? Or have you lost faith in yourself as a creator in that medium? Graphic novels are on their way UP in social significance, not down. It’s getting trendier to follow a series like Saga or Hawkeye or Deadpool (three of my faves!). On the one hand, maybe it is time for you to move on. Then again, maybe it’s time for a completely different kind of personal evaluation.
Rhonda,
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. You are so right – it’s not the writing that makes a best seller, but the selling. And that is disappointing for a lot of writers.
I trust your input will inspire Joshua.
I agree. I have been stuck in a job that I have no motivation for for the past four and a half years. For that whole time, I have been looking for a better opportunity, but with no luck. It seems as if no one wants to hire someone with expert level skills, but who is in his late 40s. I seem to have too much experience. I am starting to wonder if I need a whole new career. I am so discouraged and hopeless.
Tony – just be very clear what the “opportunity” should look like for you. Be specific and then be very clear on communicating what unique talents and passions you bring to the table to make you the best candidate for that opportunity.
Thanks for your response Dan. That is actually part of the problem. I have been a graphic designer for almost 25 years, but I’m wondering if I’m just stuck at the career level that I am. I feel like I have so many interests that I am not clear what that opportunity should look like for me. I am looking for a job/career/position that has me excited to get out of bed every day. Or at least most days.