Your Passion Is Your Compass

After spending years running personal development courses and working as a life coach, there is one phrase I repeat over and over again; your passion is your compass, money follows passion. What do I mean when I say your passion is your compass? I mean find something you love, something you would do for free, something that has you wake up in the middle of the night full of amazing ideas you can’t wait to implement, and follow that idea wherever it takes you.

When Jarrod Partridge attended Live it Now in March 2015, he was a shell of a person, barely existing. He would get up each morning and drag himself to a corporate job that no longer aligned with his values or skills, and was disconnected from himself and those around him.

Jarrod had also been a part-time sports photographer for seven years and had travelled the world covering cycling races and motorsport. His passion was cycling, so he attended Live it Now thinking he would unlock the secret that would turn his side-hustle into his full-time career…

Discover Your Passion

The secret is that change comes from within. I can’t drag someone to the doorway of change and make them find their passion, but I can certainly help people uncover what it is they love. For Jarrod, he loves having fun and being the cheeky kid who doesn’t grow up.

The photography was giving him the external validation he craved to hide a wound, however, it was no longer fun. The late nights, the demands for free images, and the stresses on his relationship were all taking a toll, and his passion for photography was gone.

“I had been shooting for so long, I no longer knew who I was without it. During the corporate 9-5 there were people I enjoyed working with, but I didn’t value myself and I allowed myself to be pushed into a role I hated and didn’t have the skills for. On the weekends I was going to cycling events to shoot them because that’s what I always did. Again, the people I interacted with were great, but the actual process wasn’t stimulating.

‘Going into Live it Now I knew I loved sports, I loved travel, and I loved fun, and that the most fun I ever have is when I’m watching sports, but I didn’t know how to combine the three to make a career if I wasn’t going to continue with photography. I hoped someone there had the answer.”

As it turns out, the seed for his passion was planted three years earlier on a trip to Bali for a wedding. The process of uncovering his passion at Live it Now gave that seed the care and support it needed to become a brand new business!

Define Your Passion

During the Live it Now weekend, I noticed during the first day that Jarrod wouldn’t make eye contact with me. It was like he could sense I was about to look in his direction, and he would look away. This isn’t uncommon, so many people are disconnected from life that any form of interaction is a challenge.

Then, on the second day, Transformation Day, Jarrod found his spark.

During that trip to Bali in 2012, Jarrod noticed that it would be an incredible place to go cycling. The roads were smooth and wide, the scenery was unbelievable, the food was amazing, and the villas were luxurious. The seed for taking people on luxury cycling tours of Bali was planted, it just had to wait for the right conditions before it could grow.

“I remember being terrified of you Matt! I’d sunken so far into myself that I didn’t want anyone poking around in my feelings. Then, it happened. You took us through a process that previously I had written off as something only ‘hippies’ do, and all the walls came down.

‘Earlier in the weekend you had told us change could happen in an instant, and I didn’t believe you. Then I experienced it! In that one instant I saw a clear vision of what I wanted to do, and for the first time in years, I was bouncing off the walls excited about something.

‘I knew, without any shadow of a doubt, that I had to launch a business that took people cycling in Bali. It combined my loves; cycling, travel, fun. It meant that I would no longer be existing to pay bills, I would be living a life full of purpose!

‘At that moment I also realised you were here to help and support me, I wasn’t scared, and I had to go and tell you my idea then and there, ha ha!”

Jarrod’s passion for cycling and for helping communities through cycling brought up my own emotions, as my grandfather had a workshop set up where he would fix bikes for kids in the community, and he taught me how to ride my first bike from his workshop.

Follow Your Passion

Jarrod signed up for our Platinum Package shortly after Live it Now, and the man I met to discuss this new business idea just days after Live it Now was completely different to the man who tried to blend into his chair throughout the weekend.

After completing Excellence Now in June of 2015 and clearing the limiting decisions he had around himself and his business, Jarrod flew directly to Bali armed with tools and techniques he could use to keep himself focussed and on track to establish the business of his dreams.

Within days, he had found his team.

“I flew up to Sydney from Melbourne to complete Excellence Now, and decided that I should head straight to Bali and strike while the iron was hot. I had no idea what to expect going into Excellence Now, and I’m happy to say it was a brilliant decision!

‘When I booked the trip, I had given myself ten days in Bali to scout out roads and villas that I thought would be good for the tours. When I got there, I realised I had no idea how to map out a cycling route! Previously, I would have retreated into myself and given up. This time, I used the NLP techniques I had learnt to stop the negative self-talk and pushed on.

‘On Day 2 of my reconnaissance mission, through six degrees of separation and knowing how to build rapport with people, I met a man from the Bali Cycling Federation (that I had no idea even existed!) and discovered that he had the routes, the support team, and the infrastructure to take people on amazing rides, he just needed people to take. The next day I met a man who had run professional cycling events in Belgium and had moved to Bali to rent out luxury villas. I had my team, my infrastructure, and seven free days to relax and recharge!”

Where Will Your Passion Take You?

At Live it Now, we work with you to create a seven-year vision. We get specific on what your life will look like seven years into the future. For Jarrod, his vision included launching his cycling tour business and living overseas.

In just 18 months, he has completed these two huge goals.

He now regularly takes people on amazing cycling trips throughout Bali, having so much fun and creating lifelong memories for his guests, and, I’m so excited to say, he and his wife Honey have just moved to Bali to live so they can build a life in paradise!

So many people go to a place like Bali for a holiday, say they never want to leave, then get on the plane home and return to the boring life they briefly escaped.

Not Jarrod.

He set a goal, committed to achieving that goal, and executed on it ahead of schedule.

Mate, I’m so excited to see what you achieve next with UpShift Tours, and look forward to coming and sharing a Bintang with you!

If you’re ready to make your passion your compass, come and give your idea seeds the nutrients they need to flourish at Live it Now!

Kindest regards,

Matt Catling

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