Javier's early racing!

In previous posts I have stressed the importance for love in all your activities. Passion for your work is most certainly a fundamental ingredient that will see you through the toughest times as you persist on achieving your goals. However, not all your passions contain a sense of mission that will appeal to your highest creative self. This post intends to explore the difference between passion and mission to help you define your character in your Just Action journey.

Javier's latest racing!

As a child, I had a passion for cars, driving, and racing. My earliest childhood memory is while riding in the back car seat of my father’s 1963 Porsche 356. I also remember my parents’ apartment brilliant track like layout where all rooms were connected. I used to drive my 911 pedal car around it with extreme precision skillfully avoiding assorted furniture and adults along the way. I probably drew hundreds of cars, built radio control car kits, and dreamed of being an engineer at Porsche or Mercedes. When my father “taught” me how to drive, he hardly said a word. I knew how to drive with not much instruction thanks to the many years of attentive observation. My first patented invention was a safety device for cars that I tried to market at the tender age of 18-19 in the US automotive industry (a huge learning experience by the way). Then, I became a Mechanical Engineer and on and on… In other words, cars and racing where my passion and I still enjoy it – (click for photos of the latest).

From Passion to Passion with a Mission

However, priorities seemed to shift and I did not know why. But without being fully aware of the reason, by the late 90’s I was already helping entrepreneurs build their internet companies and strategies. At the time, the Internet was booming, and I was attracted by the unbounded creative possibilities. I enjoyed tackling new challenges all the time so I went on to build all kinds of online services and communities. It was fun because there was no limit to my expression. However, I still didn’t have a clear mission at the time. I was just having fun creating cool new things and helping others do the same. In time, I realized I enjoyed helping people with their projects and I learned a lot through observation of many failures and a few successes I got to see.

Your Mission with Passion

I went on to create Just Action instead of becoming a race car driver. As I ponder the reasons, I cannot deny the exhilaration that I still feel when driving on a race track, but as I look back to the decisions I have made, my personal path was not about going around a track faster than anyone, even if it is incredible adrenaline pumping fun. Instead, I realized I had pursued my other creative passions, most importantly helping others discover and realize their potential. I feel a deep sense of accomplishment every time I teach a seminar, give a speech, or coach a person. It is a sense of exhilaration that finds me more energized when I complete it than when I start it. All are telling signs that when I am doing these activities I am expressing my highest vibration. Ever more satisfied that with every bit I am leaving my best legacy.