Keeping the Passion in "Passion Project"
TIA PATIL, OIP 2021
TIA, A CURRENT JUNIOR STUDYING FINANCE AND MANAGEMENT AT NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, WRITES ABOUT HOW SHE STAYS PASSIONATE WHILE BALANCING ALL OF HER DIFFERENT COMMITMENTS.
Every GWI scholar I have met has been keen to do their part to help their community and to make a difference in a way that is meaningful to them.
When I first moved to New York for college, managing time while running a sustainable e-business, attending classes as a full-time student, meeting new people, and preparing for a career in finance was challenging.
I’ve learned a few philosophies along the way that have helped me manage my time more effectively.
Motivation starts from finding the areas to improve.
No matter how busy life gets, I always try to make time to reflect on where I want to improve next. And that motivates me to strive for my goals and step out of my comfort zone. It could be something small and simple, such as waking up at 7:30 am this weekend or finishing a book this month. It can also be something more challenging, such as learning Excel modeling or picking up a new language. While I am thinking about where I want to improve, I write down everything in my personal notebook and then examine to find my top priority.
My next area of improvement is self-learning. College is the time to explore interests and find my passion, but during the school semester, it is hard to find free time to self-educate on things outside of school that intrigue me. Now that I am in winter break, I hope to finish the three books that I borrowed from the school library and complete the MIT open course on Blockchain and Money.
Do Your Part, with Passion.
When I find something I am passionate about, making time for it becomes less of a task. When I first started my sustainable e-business, I dedicated all my time to it. I also found myself taking greater initiative – I met with the tailors and packers I worked with, and we decided that weekly English, math, and politics lessons for them and their children would be a great way for me to give back to the people who help me execute my business.
Even today, my time doing “nothing”—waiting in line at Target, riding the bus, or brushing my teeth at night—is spent passively thinking about new products I can offer to my existing customer base, current topics to teach the people I work with, or methods to further streamline packaging and shipping processes.
Managing time while doing my part can be a challenge; however, I have found that doing it with my heart makes it a little more effortless for me and far more meaningful for my community.
Be Honest with Yourself.
Once you find yourself doing something that you are passionate about and can happily allocate your passive time to, actively allocating your time is equally important.
It is easy to overestimate how much time I have, or how much I am capable of achieving in a day. However, fulfilling a responsibility to someone means being honest with myself first. In doing so, I like to plan out how much time I have each day and evaluate past experiences to realistically estimate the time required to complete each task. Then, I buffer those estimates in case of smaller obstacles such as miscommunications or changes in plans. It helps to be honest with yourself and offer yourself time for errors—that way you can be honest with those who are counting on you in turn.
Finalizing decisions and executing plans always seems to take longer than anticipated—do not let this deter you! I have found that while it is easy to overestimate how much you can do in a day, it is equally easy to underestimate how much you are capable of accomplishing in a week, month, or year.
Set Goals—The Key to Finding a Balance.
While managing my business, I make it a point to connect directly with the tailors and packers I work with once a week. This routine helps us collaborate to discuss goals and establish timelines for one another. Setting a routine to define objectives and discussing them with others is a great way to hold myself accountable.
Moreover, I have found that the best way to consistently accomplish goals without mental exhaustion is to offer grace to yourself and others over shorter time frames and to be firmer with one another over longer time frames. Defining the length of these “short” and “long” time periods takes time and some trial and error. For instance, through my experience, I have found that my team works best when we set firm goals to accomplish by the end of a week and offer one another some flexibility within the week.
Take Care of Yourself and Others
Above all, the best way to ensure that you are staying productive and managing time well is to be understanding with yourself, and to give yourself days off when you need them. When working in a team, I have developed the best relationships and accomplished collective goals best while extending this same principle to my teammates.
I have found that making time to protect and foster my passion is what drives me to be approach my objectives creatively, positively, and with confidence. I hope this has been a helpful resource and send my best to all readers who are keen on maintaining the “passion” in their passion project while balancing a busy schedule.