Ban small talk

photo taken by Murad Peshimam

Do you strongly dislike small talk that wanders from one pointless observation to the next?

“Great weather we’re having.”

“Time to file taxes.”

“I’m so tired. Who isn’t? Thank goodness for coffee!”

Interrupt your chatty new friend with the following, “Tell me what you’re really excited about! Why do you get up in the morning?” Most people will have trouble answering and that’s EFFED UP! Either your airport terminal friend will be silenced or your conversation will take an interesting turn as they describe their passions in life.

Since one of my greatest fears in life is hypocrisy, I made a quick list of my own passions before pushing the challenge on my audience:

-writing
-baking
-yoga
-live music (Martha Wainwright has held my attention the past few months)
-serving as a resource
-food
-fashion
-good conversation
-chai lattes from Aroma
-travel

It’s your turn! No seriously, write them down. Don’t do as I would and list three in my head, decide that means I passed a test to prove that I have passions, then breeze onto the next paragraph of this post.

Finished? Gracias!

I’m currently reading New York Times Bestseller “What Should I Do with My Life?” by Po Bronson. It’s a compilation of interviews with people all over the world who are searching for or have found their passion and made it their central focus in life. It’s not a profound resource that holds all of the answers you’ve been looking for, but Bronson successfully organized an interesting smattering of the human experience. Most people do not have the tools/experience/awareness to pursue their passion the day they graduate from high school. Bronson proves that our winding roads are sometimes necessary and completely normal. He also gives equal words to both male and female professionals in the pages of his book. Hash tag: gender should not dictate whether you pursue your passion. Make that a trending topic. It’s long overdue.

Feminist comments aside (I’m taking the word back and separating it from it’s negative vibes), what are you excited about? Why did you get up this morning? What will you spend the rest of your life doing? Eff the passionless existence, roll up your sleeves, and seek your answers.

Picture yourself focused

My friend Tai is kind and warm-hearted, but she also embodies the qualities of the archetypal, gritty New Yorker who powers-through anything. Very eff the funk. Originally from Colorado, where she received her degree in photography, she claims that she liked shooting urban, gritty scenes before moving to NYC. For Tai, the work and satisfaction is in the nitty-gritty details. The day I followed her around Soho and Greenwich Village while she shot on her Canon she was using expired film so that the colors in the picture would be over-saturated.

We live in the age of Instagram (don’t hate the player, hate the app: Text-Only Instagram), but as Tai points out, “Having an Instagram account doesn’t make you an artist.” What does make you an “artist?” Putting in the time and effort. Do you focus your energy and invest time in your passion(s)? One of the reasons I started this blog is that I enjoy writing. It had been over two years since I wrote anything and I needed an outlet. I try to work on drafts for upcoming posts at least a few hours a week but the ebb and flow of everyday life can be so diverting. Sometimes I write in twenty-minute spurts while riding the subway. Without the time commitment, my blog would cease to exist and the quality of my writing would surely revert to sloppy, short-hand slang. Eff the funk and give your passion(s) the attention they deserve!