The "Multi-Passionate" Dilemma

Identifying as "multi-passionate" comes with its own set of challenges:

1. The Difficulty in Making Choices

For those of us with diverse interests, the advice to focus on one passion can feel disheartening.

However, decisions must be made.

Being "multi-" often leads to stagnation. Achieving a dream—something that initially appears abstract—demands concentrated effort.

If you spread yourself too thin, your productivity diminishes.

The more stretched you are, the weaker you become, making it easier to falter.

As entrepreneur Derek Sivers wisely notes:

"Buridan's donkey is caught between a pile of hay and a bucket of water, unable to choose, ultimately perishing from hunger and thirst."

Inability to decide can lead to paralysis, causing you to leave this world without achieving anything.

2. "But I'm Skilled in Many Areas!"

So are countless others; that doesn't mean we should pursue every interest with equal vigor.

We often find ourselves enamored with the concept of doing many things, but that doesn't equate to actual engagement.

Dip your toes into various fields, immersing yourself to see if one is worth a long-term commitment.

3. Jack of All Trades, Master of None

If you believe that striving for mastery is selfish, then you've encountered the first hurdle.

Mastery is not about personal gain; it's about contributing to the world.

"You must view your pursuit of mastery as a vital and positive endeavor. The world is filled with problems that require significant effort and creativity to solve." — Robert Greene, from Mastery

Choose a focus; you cannot master everything.

If mastery isn't your goal, you may as well stop reading now.

However, if you're eager to realize your BIG dreams (which I hope you are), you won't achieve them without concentrated effort.

Your ambitious goals demand substantial commitment.

You can't be spread across multiple areas and expect to succeed in any of them.

If you believe, as I do, that true happiness lies in growth, then the highest form of happiness is achieved through mastery, which unveils a remarkable perspective on life that you might otherwise miss.

Decide

The term "decide" is derived from the Latin decidere, meaning "to cut off."

To make a decision literally means to eliminate options.

You know this: something must yield.

Choose One Thing

There’s a book I’ve been avoiding, knowing it would challenge my very core:

The premise of The ONE Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan is about identifying the singular focus that will lead to outstanding results.

Keller discovered that by concentrating on one goal, he could actually achieve significant progress.

"Extraordinary results stem from how narrowly you can focus." — Gary Keller with Jay Papasan, The ONE Thing

Focus is crucial.

Multitasking is a myth. Being "busy" does not equate to making progress.

Life revolves around your focus.

Never underestimate the power of concentration. When you dedicate your entire attention to one task, you can excel.

When You Focus, You Enter "Deep Work" or "Flow"

"Deep Work: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit." — Cal Newport, Deep Work

When you commit to focusing on one pursuit, you enable yourself to enter a profound state of productivity, free from distractions.

Newport claims that "deep work" allows you to thrive and produce exceptional results that would be impossible with divided attention.

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes "Flow" as:

"a state in which individuals are so engrossed in an activity that nothing else matters; the experience is so rewarding that people continue even at great cost, simply for the joy of it."

Achieving states like "deep work" and "flow" can significantly enhance your productivity, but they require a concentrated effort on a single task.

What will you concentrate on? What is the one action that can yield transformative results?

It's time to identify what truly matters in your life, prioritize it, and pursue it.

"Subtraction is addition," (Gary Keller/Jay Papasan).

Failing to make a decision means nothing is being cut off, leading to stagnation, wasted time, and a lack of progress.

If you stretch yourself too thin, you will struggle to excel at anything, leading to burnout and frustration.

Balance Is a Myth

"We deceive ourselves if we believe that balance means giving equal attention to everything in our lives. True balance occurs in dynamic tension." — Daniel Harkavy & Michael Hyatt, Living Forward

Push and Pull

Embrace the unbalanced approach. You must master what I term "the push and the pull."

Focus on what truly matters (your singular priority), while allowing lesser priorities to take a backseat.

Currently, my primary focus is on developing my writing career. This will grant me the financial freedom to escape traditional employment and pursue my passions, such as music, without financial worries.

Thus, writing must remain my top priority.

An ideal day would involve writing, composing music, and practicing my instrument, as I have grand aspirations for all my interests.

Yet, life is rarely ideal.

While writing is paramount, family time is equally significant.

I must prioritize both, while allowing other passions, like music, to take a backseat unless time permits.

As Harkavy and Hyatt emphasize, balance is "dynamic," not "equal."

Your challenge lies in attempting to allocate equal time to everything; when you fall short, it leads to frustration.

Not every activity holds equal importance, and success isn't about who does the most. Yet, that is how most approach their daily lives. — Gary Keller with Jay Papasan, The ONE Thing

Final Thoughts: The Long Game

Everyone you admire who has achieved anything did not do so by scattering their focus in countless directions. They honed in on one pursuit until they reached a significant milestone before branching out.

The reality is that you can achieve everything you desire, just not all at once.

"Don't be a donkey. You can accomplish everything you want; you simply need foresight and patience. If you’re thirty now and have multiple directions you want to pursue, you can dedicate ten years to each and experience them all by the time you’re ninety. It may seem absurd to plan for such a distant age, but it’s approaching, so you might as well take advantage of it." — Derek Sivers, from "Don't Be a Donkey."

I understand this isn’t a comforting notion, but you must be willing to play the long game. Yes, time is limited, but it often stretches further than we realize.

Don’t stress about whether you'll have enough time to fulfill every aspiration—that mindset is counterproductive.

Instead, prioritize to achieve meaningful milestones and find joy in the journey towards your dreams rather than merely their fulfillment.

It may feel like time is wasted, but focusing on a singular pursuit is the most effective use of your time; it’s the quickest, most reliable, and sustainable approach.

You will accelerate your growth and achieve what Keller and Papasan describe as "toppling dominoes," where achieving one goal leads seamlessly to the next.

They argue that success is sequential; tackle one task at a time for substantial outcomes.

My recent achievements on Medium have flourished because that has been my sole focus.

Even within your "one thing," narrow your concentration and build upon it.

If writing is your focus, perhaps your first step is to cultivate a daily writing habit, prioritizing that over other concerns. Concentrate on one platform, and don’t overwhelm yourself with additional tools.

Build incrementally. The more you can break a goal into manageable parts, the less daunting it becomes.

In our fast-paced world, being multi-dimensional has its perks. I will never suggest you limit your potential.

However, you can only achieve your aspirations if you exercise patience and build upon the remarkable outcomes that result from prioritizing what matters in a given timeframe.

So, what will be the ONE thing you commit to focusing on now, to foster true progress and achieve more in the long run?