I am a Food Network fanatic.

I have cooked since I was eleven. I am the mother of two whom I have to convince to eat each morning and evening. And it can be a challenge to please the palettes of a teen and a toddler, simultaneously. However, the reason I’m a junkie has very little to do with food. Sure, Ienjoy adding a few more recipes to my repertoire, but that does not fuel the addiction.

Have you ever watched the stars of this network? They are absolutely passionate about food. They looove food. The way they describe the food, the joy in their faces when they tell a story or sample their plates, the emotive words that they use… Food makes them happy! That’s what I love to watch.

Too many people get hung up on power and prestige; they never understand the joy of doing what you love. [Well, some do because their passion truly is money.] However, many of us go through life unhappy because we have not found what makes us excited. That thing that makes us want to get up everyday. Recently, quite a few young people have come to me for advice- they can not find their path, or more aptly, are lost. After listening to their story, the first thing that I ask is, what do you love. The look they give is identical. What does that have to do with anything, it says. Everything.

I have learned that I am not fulfilled unless I am 1) doing what I love and 2) using my talent to create something good. If I can combine those two, I am giddy. Admittedly, doing what you love does not always garner the largest paycheck but if you inject some ingenuity, you will be comfortable.  If you honestly can not afford to make such a switch right now, feed that passion through volunteering or as a hobby. It will keep you sane.

Perhaps it is the innate artist within, but I literally feel the tilt when I am out of balance. Before I worked for myself, if I was not taking the time to do numbers 1 and 2 listed above, I could feel my head going underwater.

So, do what makes you happy. And do it on purpose.