This article explores the journey of turning a perceived weakness—being a multi-passionate person—into a leadership strength. It discusses the challenges multi-passionate individuals face in a world that favors specialization and how embracing diverse interests can lead to expansive problem-solving and innovative leadership strategies. The article provides actionable steps for creating a vision-aligned strategy, maintaining focus, and effectively communicating goals to leverage the unique strengths of multi-passionate leaders. Multi-passionate individuals can achieve success and fulfillment in leadership roles by harnessing a broad skill set and clear vision.

Seeing what happens when we are finally honest about our weaknesses is incredible. At least, that has been the case for me.

I have always had difficulties focusing on only one thing. I am a generalist, a multi-passionate person, and an infinite learner. When people told me I needed to focus on one thing, I dismissed their words because I didn’t want to be placed in a box or carry a label. I also didn’t want to be bored. Generally, I was and still am good at everything, but I don’t excel at most things except problem-solving and understanding people.

It took me years to understand what I excel in because I have been a generalist, or, as I prefer to call myself, a multi-passionate person. Nothing is wrong with that, but finding one’s place is more difficult in a world that fosters specialization and niching down. The exciting thing is that multi-passionate people in leadership positions excel in their roles because of their ability to take expansive approaches to problem-solving.

How do I step into leadership positions as a multi-passionate?

The real challenge for multi-passionate leaders is not how to be leaders but how to get there. The reason for this is that it is so difficult for others to understand what your strengths are and how to label you. And if you are being honest, you might be grappling with the same obstacle.

I have some good news for you. It only entails your view on the word focus by implementing one of your core strengths: Your ability to have a broad understanding.

What is the difference between being focused and focusing only on one thing?

There is a difference between being focused and focusing only on one thing. Being focused means knowing where you are going, having a strategy, and knowing the individual steps. These generally require various skills that you have accumulated over the years. Niching down and focusing on one thing is, well, exactly what it sounds like.

Let’s get back to the central question of this blog post: How do you create a strategy that allows you to be focused?

Developing a strategy requires the following from you as a multi-passionate:

– You know when to say no to an opportunity.

– You don’t get distracted by shiny objects.

– You know your strengths and weaknesses in and out.

– You are aware of your thoughts, feelings, triggers, and environment.

– You know the next step (or even two steps) is.

You can focus all day long on one thing, for example, developing a new interface for the company you are working for, and you might become an expert in this. Still, without a vision and understanding of your purpose, all your work and efforts might leave you feeling empty.

4 Steps to create a strategy that enables you to turn your multi-passionate vision into reality.

Understanding your vision and purpose allows you, as a multi-passionate person, to verbalize what you are currently working on and what you are specializing in.

For example:

Let’s say your vision is: ‘To create a sustainable economy that fosters environmentally and socially friendly businesses.’

Your beliefs, values, and interests are economic growth, sustainability, cultural diversity, and collaboration. You are deeply interested in the financial market but tired of how it creates poverty, focuses only on a small group of people, and supports companies that exploit developing countries. You believe that equality and sustainability can be achieved through market development.

Skills needed:

• Understanding of emerging technologies
• Business development
• Background in economic development
• Asset management
• Ability to build communities and a following
• Knowing how to get funding
• Etc.

Vision Achievement Strategy Step 1:

Understand which skills are needed.

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The next phase involves understanding which steps you need to take to achieve your vision and who you need to contact and bring into your network to understand better what you need to do.

Planning out these steps is crucial to staying focused on the path and staying connected to your desire to be part of something meaningful. Research shows that ‘Lives may be experienced as meaningful when they are felt to have significance beyond the trivial or momentary, to have a purpose, or to have a coherence that transcends chaos’ (Frank Martela & Michael F. Steger 2016).

By mapping your path, you are creating coherence in the chaos that we experience daily. And who is better equipped to tackle life chaos than a multi-passionate person who has the ability to switch between skills seamlessly and calmly?

One last thing: German psychologist Peter Gollwitzer has shown in his research that you are 2x to 3x more likely to stick to your goals if you create a specific plan for when, where, and how you will perform the task. In one study, participants were asked to fill out this sentence: “During the next week, I will partake in at least 20 minutes of meditation on [DAY] at [TIME OF DAY] at/in [PLACE].”

Edit this sentence according to your tasks and goals.

Vision Achievement Strategy Step 2:

Understand which steps you need to take.

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To understand the next steps, you should speak to people who have done similar things before, have demonstrated a willingness to tackle the unknown, and are willing to share their strategies for getting closer to your life goal.

Once you clearly know your vision and start mapping out the path and stepping stones to get there, you can begin creating labels that help you communicate who you are and what you do.

Focus means always keeping sight of the bigger goal—aka your vision. It doesn’t mean putting yourself in a box, but it does mean being able to communicate clearly.

Remember Communication Rule No.1: It is not important what you communicate. It is important what the other person understands.

Clearly communicating what you are working on enables you to ask for help, build a community and support system, and open doors.

Multi-passionate people like you engage in various tasks, including the ability to think creatively and have multiple skills and interests that enable you to see new paths and generate ideas across fields. However, when you get too passionate about something, the brain might go into overdrive, moving you away from what is at hand. Focus on sharing your vision rather than your skills and everything you currently explore. Share what you aim to achieve.

Vision Achievement Strategy Step 3:

Clear communication.

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One thing that most multi-passionate people don’t lack is enthusiasm, though we sometimes lack the stamina to keep on going. Generally, this stems from a lack of understanding of the next step.

In positive psychology, a meaningful life stems from having a purpose, significance, fulfillment, and life satisfaction. According to research, a meaningful life is a life that has a “sense of core goals, direction in life, and enthusiasm regarding the future (George & Park, 2013, p. 371)

Reconnecting with your vision, setting a strategy, and understanding the individual steps you need to take to reach your goal will make you more productive and increase your chances of success. Still, it will also, foremost, create more life satisfaction.

Vision Achievement Strategy Step 4:

Creating infinite motivation and inspiration.

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How Combining Multiple Passions Can Unlock New Opportunities and Drive Success

When you fully embrace your passions, skills, and interests in your leadership role, you gain an advantage by seeing the world from unique perspectives. Specialists approach a problem by niching down, making it smaller, while multi-passionate leaders take an expansive approach. We want to see the whole picture.

This is your greatest skill, but just like with other tools, if you don’t practice using it effectively, you will never become an expert in your own talents.

Literature

Fuhrer, J. and Cova, F. (2022) ‘What makes a life meaningful? Folk intuitions about the content and shape of meaningful lives’, Philosophical Psychology, 36(3), pp. 477–509. doi: 10.1080/09515089.2022.2046262.

George, L. S., & Park, C. L. (2013). Are meaning and purpose distinct? An examination of correlates and predictors. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 8(5), 365–375. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.805801

Gollwitzer, P. M. (1999). Implementation intentions: Strong effects of simple plans. American Psychologist, 54(7), 493–503

Martela, F. and Steger, M. F. (2016) ‘The three meanings of meaning in life: Distinguishing coherence, purpose, and significance’, The Journal of Positive Psychology, 11(5), pp. 531–545. doi: 10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623.