Those who have found their true joys in life are the envy of those who are still in search of that one thing that can distract them from their daily woes.
For some, passion can be the simplest thing, like cooking and traveling, or something more profound like possessing strong beliefs in a cause that gives life meaning.
Curious to hear about the origin of people's interests Redditor Bizurelsurels asked:
"How did you discover your passion?"
It's a struggle for many people to find purpose.
TBD
"I haven't, and it's getting a little late in the game."
– siteofsanity
"Same. All the things I liked when I was younger, I thought I was passionate about, but I think it was all just an image/ideal I wanted to project. As an adult I have no real passions and I really envy people who have passion and zest. I want to know what it's like."
"It seems like it would be an amazing feeling. For now I just go about my day to day mundane life and try to enjoy the little things. Don't get me wrong, I have built myself a great life that would be the envy of a lot of people, but without passion, you kind of wonder, 'Is this it???' "
– hippotatobear
Feeling The Void
"I just left the room where I was having a conversation with my wife with tears in our eyes discussing how I feel like I am interested in, and passionate about, nothing. It's very discouraging as a middle aged person when I should be grateful for my family, health, job, etc. I'm glad to know I'm not alone in that but also like what the f'k. Why are we like this?!"
– chwakerider06
Invisible Obstacle
"Same, I feel like ADHD prevents me from having a real life-long passion, and makes it hard to find something I actually really want to do as a career. Just have to decide what will be the least unpleasant thing to do for work."
– LostAnd_OrFound
Still Waiting
"It's an insane source, but watching My Hero Academia made me realise I don't think I have a passion, at least not anything I'm doing anything with at the moment."
"The biggest thing I've ever been really passionate about was just being a good dad one day, but I'm not even in a relationship right now so there's nothing happening in that department anytime soon."
"Maybe I have some passions but nothing that I'm just constantly excited about."
– anon
Looking For That Initial Spark
"At 45 with nothing, 'passion' feels like a forgotten dream. I chased fleeting interests, mistaking them for true calling – music, carpentry – but bad luck and poor choices derailed me. I was searching for something to complete me, not something that simply engaged me."
"Now, passion is less about a burning fire and more about finding a spark, something to build on, even if it's just getting by. It's about finding meaning in the everyday, however small, and that's what I'm trying to do now."
– Ace0851
A little help can point us in the right direction.
Serendipitous Introduction
"My junior year of college, a friend introduced me to old animatronic restaurants of the 1980s. He really liked the animatronic bands, and of course it was the perfect thing to catch my attention as a nerdy engineering student who likes to learn how things work. I got hooked on it."
"I looked into the designs of the mechanisms and thought to myself that I could reverse-engineer this and learn to build stuff like that. The design aspect, the manufacturing aspect, and the artistic aspect all spoke to me."
"This was such a strange thing to fall into, and I’m not sure if I even would’ve if it wasn’t for it being introduced to me. I like to design and build animatronic figures now, and it is such a huge passion of mine."
"And while I have a full-time job that has nothing to do with this, I still am actively working on many plans for the future that stemmed from that initial interest. Hours of my life have been dedicated to this that I never knew would have."
– jptoycollector
Budding Author
"I never used to like reading. One day, I was reading a horror book my parents had bought me. I realized in the middle of it, all you need to write is a pen and paper. I could easily do that. So since 10 years old I’ve wanted to publish at least one book in my life."
– Nyarthu
Your Surroundings Can Be Hiding Something Special
"Was a lonely only child growing up in a dinky mountain town, living on a little farm in the woods. No cable TV, no internet back then, and no money, as mom was a single parent working and going to school just to barely get ahead. No friends for miles."
"I spent hours in the woods and in our old horse barn, making up stories in my head and listening to the radio. Started singing along to said radio, and discovered that the barn had a pretty fun acoustic. I would go out there and sing for hours every day."
"I loved the physical sensation of singing in a resonant, Western classical-music-type style, copying the stuff that I heard on the few Mozart and Greatest Opera Hits CDs I was lucky enough to own. I did choir for a few years in junior high and high school before deciding maybe I wanted to try voice lessons as a sophomore."
"Fast forward a few decades, and I'm a professional musician who had a busy performance career before settling into a very comfortable life as a voice teacher. Music is everything to me, and it all started in that dusty barn!"
– fenwai
Sometimes, passion finds you.
Cure For Boredom
"Sheer boredom…was stuck at home for two weeks. It was driving me nuts. I picked my mum’s old sewing machine and started to teach myself how to use it. I now sew and make bags as a side hustle."
– Dense_Food_159
Gradual Interest
" Slowly at first, and then all at once' I can't remember if that was a John Green original quote or he just used it."
"Like a lot of kids, I was really interested in space stuff as early as I can remember. I liked learning space facts and had a crappy telescope. And it slowed down as time went on..."
"Over a decade ago I bought a DSLR just to use around the house and decided to try out some space pictures! it didn't go well."
"3 years ago, I bought a newer, fancier DSLR and tried out some more space pictures! I spent some time on YouTube, and it went much better. So, I bought a small, photography-oriented telescope. Then I bought a star tracker, and then I went all in and Astrophotography has been dominating my life and free time for the last 2.5 years."
"Pictures I've produced: https://imgur.com/a/ongoing-album-ZOmKo7K"
– Razvee
Horror Inspiration
"While reading Stephen King's book, the Stand. I knew I wanted to be a writer just like him."
– ThatweirdoCrystal
"Did you start writing? As we get fascinated by things a lot, but we don't start doing it, or we do it then don't get the kick and creative thoughts."
– OP
"Yeah, I write short stories for fun. I had a blog up with some of my stories. But I ended up deleting it because my life was pretty boring."
– ThatweirdoCrystal
"I'm going to piggy-back off of this, if I may! I'm no writer - but I am a musician, and I love Stephen King - so me and a friend combined those two things to make a song about The Dark Tower."
"Apart from the shameless self-promotion, the broader point is that influence or fandom can manifest in a lot of different ways; and being creative is a healthy passion to have. I see you've said you've wanted to be a writer since you were 14; but if not novels, try even poetry, or lyrics - it all counts!"
"There are places where you can self-publish smaller works, and plenty of Stephen King forums around that'll appreciate anything even remotely related or similar (they enjoyed our song, for example)."
"Spread your works widely - there's always an audience out there somewhere."
– MrSlipperyFist
The Fashion DNA
"I've always been obsessed with playing dress up and turning clothes I already had into other things and now I'm in school for fashion design."
– averiroselyn
For Love Of The Game
"When I was about 10-11, there was a heavy rainstorm in which you should def NOT be outside, but all I could think of was, it’s not too bad, I can still go play soccer can’t I?"
"I’m 23 now, still have the same passion and love for the game as ever and I’m grateful for it!!"
– Imon_vacation
According to my parents, my passion for Disney was always embedded in my psyche as a toddler.
It stems from going to Disneyland in Anaheim, CA for the first time when I was 2 1/2. I don't remember the visit but my parents said I was mesmerized and in awe the entire time, especially after seeing the whimsical gold and white facade of "it's a small world."
My SoCal childhood was all about return trips to Disneyland, where the magic of fairytale lands and exciting adventures always beckoned me to come back.
I amassed a collection of old park memorabilia and collectibles over the years to remind me of every visit, whether it's a faded Mickey Mouse T-shirt or a souvenir pin commemorating a park anniversary.
I'm an unapologetically adult Disney nerd.
