The Pursuit of Passion

Book excerpt: Has it• Been a rough day?• Been a rough year?• Been a rough career?Do you• Dream about that creative idea just beyond your grasp?• Feel trapped in a job that pays you just enough to survive?• Regret not finishing your music, photography or screenplay?• Wish you had more time, more money, more ability to get things done?If so, The Pursuit Of Passion is the book for you.A concise book of deep thought and meditation, The Pursuit Of Passion is one of those rare experiences that comes along only once in a great while.It is a treasury of thoughtful, insightful reminders that can be read in one sitting, or can be referred to daily, one page at a time.The book takes you on a journey from the darkest days of the 2009 Great Recession to a place of recovery, creativity, hope and passion."These writings came from a promise. Right before Memorial Day 2009, I met with my business coach Joe Stumpf. After 20 years as a commissioned loan officer, I had just lived through possibly the worst year ever in the business. My previous company had collapsed in the mortgage meltdown of 2008. During the previous 12 months my assistant had earned more money than I had. About 50% of the people in my industry were either out of work or actively looking for jobs in other areas of business. Things looked bleak, and there was no fun left. Work had become a painful grind with very little financial reward to show for all the time spent.I shared my total burn out in the business of 20 years with my coach. Frustrated by what my life had become, it became clear that something had to give. Either I had to change jobs, or change my attitude. Maybe both! I promised to get up at 5:00 AM every day, meditate and journal, and focus on bringing passion back into every aspect of my life, my work, my family and my personal growth. Instead of going to work every day and having a pity party, I have decided to have a passion party.These writings (a sample of the 475+ entries from the website http://passionparty09.blogspot.com) are the outgrowth of that commitment. I hope they inspire you to find your passion, and that you enjoy reading them as much as I did writing them."-George Kahn“When a person integrates the practical and the artistic, the material and the spiritual, I listen. The world has more than enough disconnection; I am inspired by people who put things together. Real passion flows from these poems, the product of a mind and heart in synch.”-Shmuel Klatzkin, Rabbi