The Element

My current read: The Element by Sir Ken Robinson.

I’m a long time fan; ever since I saw his TED video on “Do schools kill creativity?”. I was enthralled by his interesting stories, perceptive ideas and effortless humour.

A while back I googled for more of his videos and saw his sharing to the RSA on ‘The Element’ - the point at which natural talent meets personal passion, for which he proclaims that ‘finding your passion does change everything.’

One story resonated with me: He went to watch a gig by a rock band in which his brother played in. There was this fantastic keyboard player named Charles. After the performance, he told Charles, “I’d love to do that.” He said “do what?” He replied “to play the keyboard” to which Charles replied, “No you don’t. He was taken aback by the reply. Then comes the stirring line:

“if you love to do it, you’d be doing it.”

When the line sank in, I was momentarily astounded. I have had on many occasions exclaimed that I’d love to do one thing or another. But I just, in the words of Robinson, “bump along the bottom doing something I feel more or less competent, things I feel I need to do, but don’t do with any great passion or commitment or any great sense of fulfilment.

Reading ‘The Element’ convinces me once again the importance of finding our true passion in life and living it with purpose. Although I have found neither, I feel encouraged to steer from my current trajectory in hope of stumbling upon my life’s true course. May all who are like me find inspiration to rewrite your future.