Follow Your Passion, .

It’s probably the worst advice that I’ve ever gotten, but still ginawa ko pa din several times. 

What can I say, I’m a hopeless romantic e.

See, I used to think passion was everything. 

Years back, I left my boring but cushy office job as a sales engineer for valves and actuators to embark on an adventurous yet often unsteady life as a wedding filmmaker and video editor. 

I was so excited to shoot and edit for days and weeks on end as a video freelancer. 

After the initial struggles to break into the industry, I built up a good network and reputation within it and I started to make good money. 

It felt like being on top of the world.

But you know what happens when you're on top...gravity brings you down real quick.

It’s not even that I actually got complacent. (Well, sometimes.)

Natambakan lang ako ng work. 

There was a time pa nga na I had more than four months’ worth of backlog waiting to be edited. 

So then… working as a videographer or being an editor went from looking forward to bookings every week to dreading going to work dahil sa backlog. 

Maybe it was the stress piling up, or dahil hirap ako mag-delegate at the time, or I was too big of an idiot to realize na dapat mag outsource na agad ako, or the feast or famine cycles that ate at me. 

I thought na "maybe videography isn't my passion anymore" - ang dami kong racing thoughts back then. 

And I’ve gone on record to say this in my emails before, I not only burnt out, I also crashed and burned. 

Hard.  

So I went on this quest to find my passion again. 

Tried several things in between, new businesses. 

I co-founded a videography school, started 3 tech startups (failed), naging Grabcar operator at na-carnap yung isang unit, and even tried to start a Milk Tea business somewhere in that timeline. 

Loved it for a bit till the feels faded. Then on to the next.

It was happening too often for me that I detected it as a pattern. 

Was something wrong with me? Would I ever find lasting passion? Palagi na lang ba ganito?

Eventually, I realized passion didn't serve me, it only gave temporary highs followed by lows. 

Purpose is more powerful than passion. 

While passion may ignite our initial enthusiasm, purpose fuels our long-term commitment. 

Passion can be fleeting, often changing with time and circumstances. Purpose, on the other hand, provides a deep sense of meaning and direction in our lives. 

It gives us the strength to persevere through challenges and setbacks with unwavering determination. 

Passion may come and go, but purpose remains steadfast, guiding us towards a fulfilling and meaningful existence.

Steady lang ba. 

So I thought about the times in my life when I found the most fulfillment, more than just making money, it’s also teaching. 

I love sharing ideas and inspiring others while also making a great living. 

I was a tutor in high school and college, I co-founded a videography school as one of my businesses, and now I’m helping people as a Freelancing coach. 

Heck, this coming November is going to mark my fifth year as a tribe coach inside the Freelance Movement Tribe. Di ko man lang napansin yung time.

However I do that in the moment, my purpose stays the same.

Napansin ko kasi, when chasing passion, you only act pag excited ka. 

What happened to me was that I mostly ground my passions into the ground. 

Sadly, if you make your passion also your income source, more often than not, you’ll fall out of love sa ginagawa mo. 

You’re no longer doing it kasi love mo sya. You do it kasi need mo i-submit sa client.

Eventually, you’ll start to resent things. 

Working yourself ragged to afford the latest equipment, trying to meet unattainable client expectations, facing pressure to meet deadlines, experiencing the same challenges day after day – all of these negative experiences contributed sa pag-grind down ng passion ko.

Pero with purpose, you act consistently whether you feel like it or not. 

You do what's right, not what's fun at the moment.

That’s also why this community is called Work FUN Home, kasi I want to make Freelancing Feel Fun, genius no haha.

When you commit 100%, the universe supports you in ways you can't imagine. Magic happens!

Tunog Miss Universe pero totoo. 

Minsan kailangan lang natin i-cut off yung other options. 

THIS is what I'm doing. This is who I AM.

So the next time someone tells you to follow your passion, suntukin mo sa mukha, este forward mo lang yung email ko and let them join my newsletter. Haha

Palo your passion,

Shoden “Despacionato” San

ps. Our first WFunHome Ebook is going to be available for pre-order this Friday! Yey! Exclusive price sa pre-order: 399

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