A Passionate Life: 7 Steps for Reclaiming Your Passion, Purpose, and Joy

A passionate, purposeful, and joyful life is in reach for each and every one of us.  At some level you have probably sensed this all along since your childhood years.  But like me your attention and belief in the proposition has probably been obscured or even undermined over time.

In fact it seems more reasonable to question how your belief in this proposition could ever withstand onslaught by destructive circumstances beyond your control, by theological indoctrination, by materialistic cultural values, and by innumerable distractions so expertly served up in today’s technological marketplace. 

In his book, A Passionate Life:  7 Steps for Reclaiming a Passionate, Purposeful, and Joyful Life, Rick Broniec delivers a firsthand account of successful resistance and triumph over the forces of derailment and distraction.  And he does so in a form that welcomes emulation and invites personalization.  You should give it a go, because only you can do so for yourself.  And, by doing so for yourself, you will be in a much better position to be of service to others. 

Most importantly, Rick Broniec illuminates the deeply subjective and inescapably spiritual dimensions of leadership.  To become a competent captain of one’s own ship, to be attentive and appropriately responsive to one’s own emotional self, is offered as a prerequisite to effective action in the outer world. 

With emotional self-mastery, the conviction of purpose that comes from spiritual practices, and the discipline to be accountable for one’s actions in the world, a foundation for leadership is built over time.  Folks sense its presence even when it may be difficult to articulate, because good leadership is as much a felt emotional and spiritual experience as it is any particular set of traits or actions.   

Rick Broniec offers much needed practical examples of diverse methods for directing or redirecting our attention to where it will be most valuable to resolve self-limiting habits and to access our deeper selves.   The merits of 12-step communities, breathwork, initiations, meditation, peer counseling, and other practices are examined and offered for their potential fit to a reader’s circumstances. 

In a genuine celebration of diversity among humankind and the myriad of spiritual practices that have withstood the test of time, we are encouraged to sample, choose for fit, and then engage deeply with constancy over time.  Just as a writer can be defined as someone who has written today, a passionate person is usually someone who engaged in his or her spiritual practice today. 

As a Chief Information Officer for the U.S. federal government and a facilitator of leadership development for the Society of Information Management, I have had the privilege of guiding successful professionals toward the authenticity, integrity, and accountability associated with fulfillment of one's personal mission. This book addresses both the discovery and the discipline needed to access the extra-rational dimensions of our human condition with credibility, humility, and curiosity.

If private victories precede public victories as Stephen Covey suggests, then Rick Broniec has contributed a rough map of the terrain to guide you on your journey to victory.    Michael W. Carleton

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