They were high-school buddies – two geeky guys who shared a unreasonable love for all things tech. Thankfully for them, their high school saw their passion and their potential and let the two teenagers experiment with their skills on with some very expensive machinery. And what began in the seventies as two gawky high-schoolers unleashing their brain power on unwieldy, electricity-consuming machines later became one of the world’s most successful companies.
The two students? They were none other than Bill Gates and his buddy Paul Allen – the founders of Microsoft.
Though they were only kids, their teachers recognized their potential and passion and let the two teens work on the school’s computers to create a scheduling system. Sometimes, the school even let Bill Gates skip 8th grade Math class so he could spend time designing video games.
Yes, the boy who didn’t have 100% attendance and later dropped out of college is now the world’s richest man.
Here’s the thing: Gates didn’t set out to be the wealthiest person alive.
He set out with an unbridled passion for his subject – computers.
He lived and breathed computers even though no one else seemed to understand much about it.
When the young Bill Gates used up all the time that his high school gave him on their terminal, he called the University of Washington and convinced them to give him some time on their system. They finally relented – and Gates got a slot from 3 am to 6 am.
That’s passion. It’s the thing that gets you out of bed an 3 am. It’s the drive to wake every day and do the thing that makes you exuberant – even if no one else “gets it.”
Passion is not just a hobby or a passing interest. It’s the thing that you can’t stop dreaming about. It’s the thing that you think about the most. It’s the thing that your friends know you’re going to be talking about – yet again.
But perhaps you’re thinking: But… I don’t know what my passion is. I’m not sure I even have one.
At The Purpose Project, we believe that every person – including you – has a passion. It may be buried under years of being told “you can’t” or being advised that your passion is not “worth it” because it won’t bring in a paycheck. Or perhaps you’ve dismissed your passion because you tasted failure and found it exceptionally unpleasant. Perhaps the daily routine, the mundane tasks have caused an “amnesia” where you simply can’t remember your passion anymore.
We’re here to help discover that passion if you’re not sure what it is. We’re here to help you grow that passion into a blazing fire, even if it feels like a flickering wick. We’re here to tell you that your passion can translate into a living your dream and can give you the opportunity to help others.
Your passion doesn’t have an expiry date or a finish line. It’s something that is going to propel you for the rest of your life. So, dig deep and find your passion. Branch out and grow your passion. Be bold and live your passion.
Author: Susan Narjala
Susan Narjala is a writer who blogs regularly on her website www.susannarjala.com. Her articles have been published on Desiring God, Randy Alcorn’s blog, Relevant Magazine and Huffington Post.
With a master’s degree in journalism from Syracuse University, New York, other publications she’s written for include: Indiaanya, FaithIt, Her View from Home, The MOPS Blog, For Every Mom, The Hindu, Motherly, Engage Magazine (Ravi Zacharias International Ministries) and Parent.com.
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