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Searching for Energy
How to diagnose and find passion
As I’m writing this, I have one word written on my whiteboard. It’s been there for weeks. That word is “energy.” Energy is the level of intensity, passion, or excitement that we bring to the table. Recently, I’ve found it’s the key that unlocks a lot of things for me.
Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you. — Oprah Winfrey
Contextual and Intrinsic
I find it helpful to categorize energy in two buckets: contextual and intrinsic. Contextual energy is what you get from your environment. It’s how you feel about the people around you, the career that you have chosen, or the place where you live. It’s situational and requires some kind of concrete action to change it. This is the level of passion, awareness, and excitement that your life brings you.
On the other side of things is intrinsic energy. Intrinsic energy is what you bring to your environment and more broadly, your life. It’s not context-dependent but rather driven by your mindset and how you view the world. It’s going into something with an intentional pep in your step; a certain focus and drive that you consciously or subconsciously have implemented for yourself.
