Free Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life by Joshua Fields Millburn, Ryan Nicodemus Page A

satisfied with what we did for a living. We weren’t living our mission. 
    We didn’t feel fulfilled by our careers, so we turned to our society’s idea of a living: we bought stuff, spent too much money, and lived paycheck to paycheck trying to purchase happiness in every trip to the shopping mall or luxurious vacation we could find. Instead of finding our passion, instead of searching for our mission, we pacified ourselves with ephemeral indulgences, inducing a crack-cocaine high that didn’t last far past the checkout line.
    Eventually we discovered that our passion, and thus our mission, was waiting far beyond the sea of consumption, but first we had to remove a lot of anchors before we could navigate our way into clearer waters.
    Joshua has a deep passion for reading and writing—particularly literary fiction. Ryan has a passion for mentoring and coaching people—helping them solve their problems. Once we discovered our passions, we were able to shape them into our mission over a two year period.
     
    The Confluence of Passion & Mission
    It’s important to note that we don’t subscribe to the notion that working for a corporation is bad or evil. We don’t believe that to be the case. 
    We also don’t believe that you were meant to be passionate about one particular thing or that you have one true calling in life. 
    Rather, we believe you can be passionate about virtually anything. So anything can be your passion. Consequently, any line of work can be your mission. Just because something sounds banal or boring to one person doesn’t mean it’s not exciting and rewarding for another. It is perfectly plausible to think that someone can be deeply passionate about financial accounting the same way another person might be passionate about horseback riding, neither of which sound too exciting to us, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t people who are passionate about both.
    Occasionally, people stumble into a line of work that brings them ultimate satisfaction. These people who are paid to do what they love tend to refer to their work as their mission. Is that you? If so, congratulations—you are one of the few. If you don’t, however, feel grateful and passionate about the day’s work, then chances are you have not found (or are not pursuing) your mission.
    The rest of this chapter is dedicated to helping you find your passions and pursue your mission. 
    This journey is incredibly easy for some people. These people already know what they’re passionate about, but perhaps aren’t yet pursuing that passion as their full-time mission.
    Conversely, this journey is sometimes the hardest part for other people. Some people don’t know what they want to do, they don’t know what they’re passionate about, they have no clue what their mission is.
    No matter where you fall on this continuum, the rest of this chapter will help you identify the anchors that are holding you back from discovering and/or pursuing your passions.
     
    A Misconception About Passionate People
    A common misconception is that people who are passionate about what they do are inherently that way, as if they wake up every day feeling optimistic and passionate about the hours ahead. That misconception is illogical—it couldn’t be further from the truth.
    People who are passionate about what they do are in most ways just like people who aren’t passionate about their work. Some days passionate people don’t want to get out of bed, sometimes they don’t feel like starting work on the new project that’s looming in front of them. Other days they jump out of bed feeling excited and motivated by their mission. In other words, passionate people are just like you.
     
    Passion Fuels More Passion
    There are, however, two distinct differences that distinguish passionate people from uninspired people.
    First, passionate people know what they are passionate about. Boiled down to that last sentence, this statement might sound obvious and trite, but