Talking about passion and its significance in human history is really hard to understate. Any advancement in any sphere of life we’ve realized as a global community is because of passion. To be specific, because of the many passionate individuals who pushed boundaries as we knew it.
One can even argue that the present we’ve inherited is in part a result of the pursuit of passion by people. From technology to art, to music, to economies, passion has changed our perceptions and built better realities.
It is extremely unfortunate then that these very passions have created a world where the pursuit of passion, by individuals of today, has hurdles we’ve never seen before. Today, with the advent of technology and globalization, it is really hard to find a natural place for your passions to thrive.
The contrasting views of your peers and the growth of social responsibilities, both digital and otherwise, pose a great threat to a better future. A future that’s built on the efforts of people passionate about different aspects of life.
There is an imminent need for a place for your passions to thrive, and to fuel a similar growth as we saw in previous generations.
Why do you need a place for your passion?
Like most things in life, it’s always better to have a space attached to anything you’re doing. As there are schools to bring together people who want to learn. As there are focus groups where most other people are also looking forward to similar things as you are.
Us humans are wired to shine when there are people around us that have similar aspirations and interests. Yes, of course, we can excel at anything on our own too. But if you look close, collaboration and communities add to your growth. It is the same with your passions too.
Your passion, whatever that may be, will flower if you commit a place for it. By place, it doesn’t necessarily mean a physical place. What it means is a place where you can fall back to when you are feeling low on motivation or ideas. It could be a group of people you interact with. Or, it could be people who are in a completely different hemisphere of the world and yet love to share their passion with you.
Imagine a place where, let’s say, your passion for nature and for being a naturalist has a natural home. You can interact with people, learn from what they are doing or up to these days, and ultimately feel a part of it. Imagine the growth and the prospects that could open up for you. It will provide you with the motivation and zeal that you need every day to pursue your passion.
Such a place can help you understand the newer trends among naturalists as soon as they appear because these will be shared in the community. You’ll come to know about any new career or learning opportunity first, as the members of the community will know that most others, if not all, will certainly be interested in it.
On top of it, a place like this will help your passion find a natural belonging. A place where you’ll know that the people will call you fellow-naturalists. It is the very essence of a community.
Aren’t the many global platforms already providing such an avenue?
The social platforms of today have come a long way, both in terms of serving the needs of their members and in terms of creating a huge global reach. The platforms are interactive and can be called a global community in every sense of the word.
Well, almost every sense of the word, except for a single defining factor — people with a common interest, need, and aspiration.
The social media landscape today was really built and envisioned a couple of decades ago. We were then in the midst of an internet boom and we wanted to have a platform to connect with people from different parts of the world.
The idea was connectivity and not community building.
These platforms are good at providing an avenue for access but aren’t that effective when you want to build a powerful community. The inherent design of the platforms wasn’t built for that.
Let’s look at it from a different angle to understand it a little better. Have a look at your immediate group of people you connect and relate with. These are more often than not your friends, or your peer you work or spend your time with. And mostly these are people who are from similar geography as you are in at the moment, or from places you’ve been in the past either for work or study. And then, there could be people who are a part of your circle from your interests and passion. Again, mostly from similar geography or of similar age groups.
And now have a look at the kind of people you’d want to connect with over a social platform. There is hardly any similarity or common ground of thought and understanding. In the online world, there are people from all walks of life, from a multiverse of geographies, and numerous backgrounds of interests. The social platform was designed to accommodate all of these people and their interests, and in doing so, is anything but generalized.
Right from the functionality, to the content you interact with, to the people you connect. Everything follows a generalized pattern and isn’t all that specialized for your needs. And not to accommodate your hunger for the passion you hold so dear to you. Not to mention the attention-grabbing philosophies these platforms usually have to facilitate the marketers that it serves.
Your peers and the people you associate with are also not ideal when it comes to your efforts to grow your passion. They have different aspirations and have different life trajectories, which, at times, can come in the way of your pursuits. The social platform only accentuates this aspect. What your passion need is adequate nurturing and support from people who value it. In our day-to-day lives, our responsibilities and our daily needs tend to overwhelm us.
Everyone requires a place where they can fall back to when this happens. A place that is designed keeping individual passions and needs in mind, and knows that this is needed to build the future.
So, where do you start your search for such a place?
While some people are lucky to have their passions find a natural place in the current globalized communities, most others aren’t that fortunate. For the majority of us finding a natural place for our passions is a major task on its own.
Do I go to the local guitar community where there are many passionate guitarists from my area? Or, do I go for a global community where I can find the best guitarists in the world and connect with them? Or, do I opt for a guitar-focused learning group where professionals and apprentices are creating a great atmosphere for learning?
The options frankly are many. And, if you are really serious about your passion, finding a place that can provide you with your needs for growth could be challenging and often takes a lot of effort.
Now consider if you don’t have to do all those things to be a part of a great place of passion. Consider if all these things are already built-in for you no matter what level you are at. You could be a beginner in the passion you want to follow, or you could be professional.
Consider a place where your appetite for knowledge and aspiration for newer opportunities are built right in the fabric of the community. Consider a place that is focused on your goals rather than their own because they know the importance of people who are passionate about what they do.
