There are the passionistas and the opportunists.
The passionistas argue you should do what you love. The opportunists argue you should do what you see.
In a place like Costa Rica, where C and I have a home, there’s so much opportunity it’s dizzying. Every five minutes I’m starting a new business in my brain. Lack = opportunity. And if I didn’t give a shit about the way I spend my time, I’d be the biggest opportunist there was. I’D OWN HOTELS OR SOMETHING, YOU GUYS. And definitely a lemon shop. Did you know there are no lemons in Costa Rica, only limes? I REST MY CASE.
But just because you could do something, doesn’t mean you should. This is where the passionista side comes in, with her sweet little voice, as she whispers in your ear: Forget me not.
And so you search and sift and sort through all of the hypotheticals until you land on the scenario that, in an ideal world, sits right at the intersection of both: something you love to do, where there’s also business viability. But most people stop short. They go for the love, but neglect to consider how something might fit into the marketplace. Sure, you could start another mediocre online group in which you’re doling out advice all the live long day, but if no one cares, you will go bankrupt. No bones about it. Game over. Not viable. EEEETTTTTTTTT.
So here’s a tip when you’re thinking about your next move:
Think about what you hate about your industry.
Then, figure out how you can turn it into love.
How can you take that very thing and turn it into a competitive edge? How can you stand for the opposite? How can you do it better? How can you use a negative and turn it into an advantage?
This is how you construct opportunity, as opposed to trying to find it.
This is how you become an opportunist born from love—not in spite of it.
And this is how you can go for the love AND the money. Because it’s not a dichotomy, it’s a layering of both. And the most successful know that doing what you love is a given—because anything less, and you'd be a slave.