Passion and Discipline, Secrets to life?

Passion and discipline.  I  have come to believe that most if not all of life boils down to balancing the two.

I know, passion is the loud one, right? Drawing attention, ignoring the naysayers hopeful and energetic. So attractive, free and easy to love. But the dark side of passion is that it will work to control you, to seduce you into thinking it is worth sacrificing all else to feed it–all the while projecting a self efficating persona that lives in the ever isolating valley of “this is just who I am.” Therefore I need no financial plan, no family, no commitment and certainly no standard that stands in the way of my goal. Lives crashing off this high are prevalent in medicine, business and, of course, the highly publicized entertainment industry. It’s the all sugar diet. Striving to stay constantly drunk. Selling everything to get the high. It becomes the raging fire sucking up the oxygen in a sealed tomb.

Not that discipline doesn’t have it’s dark side. I love the quote from Princess Bride, “Life is pain, Princess, anyone telling you something different is trying to sell you something.” Admittedly, the humor comes from the truth in the statement.  Discipline is ultimately the structured art of self protection. At it’s best it can overcome flaws and bad habits, recapture time, refine skills to elite levels and lay a foundation for relationships based on dependability and safety. No wonder it is highly sought after. But discipline can also squeeze the life out of everything. Don’t risk. Don’t bend. Don’t rock the boat. Nothing is worth the exception. Interest only works for you if you start young and NEVER deter. Distraction — even the hug of a child, or the playful intimacy of love — is the enemy. The lines between discipline and fear blur.  Tighter and tighter the parameters become until the path becomes so choking, so narrow, that even Jesus might take issue.

The key is balance. The trick is that it looks different for various professions and personalities and dreams. No one said artists can’t dream smart or ship often (thanks, Seth, for emphatically telling us we can and should!). No one said that missionaries can’t be self supporting or have economic as well as spiritual impact. And the global business impact of the internet certainly did not come (and will not come) from those who are risk adverse or control freaks.

We see this reality all around us daily.  So whether both become a personal mission, or you develop a partnership/team to balance your natural inclinations, in the race of life, here are the two things critical to a strong finish:  Passion and discipline.

How are you balancing these in your life?