Desire. Enthusiasm. Purpose. Pleasure. Delight. Peace. Power. However you define passion, it is at the heart of your motivation.

Feeling passion fuels your spirit and feeds your joy.

Passion is a catalyst for action and provides you with the emotional stamina to stick with it, regardless of the obstacles.

Every day should have threads of passionate pursuits within it.

Think of the times in your life when you have been deeply passionate about something. Whether it is for your family, a cause, a person, an adventure, a hobby, a career, a love for music, or even going to the beach—your passion for it helps you tap into your unique personal power to live and love your life out loud.

What turns you on, tunes you in, and lights your fire?

When passion is lit, the fire permeates your being with the positive expectation that all is well and everything will turn out great.

To be truly satisfied that your life is well-lived, the object of your passion is something you feel you must be, do, or have. What lights your fire?

Passion is not just about the object of your focus or desires—it is the compelling emotion, fulfillment, and intense enthusiasm that it engenders.

Are you impressed when you meet people who are filled with passion and conviction? Their energy is contagious and can make us all want “some of what they’re having!

When a person exudes passion, it is evident that they love what they are doing. Their passion projects an aura of confidence and decisiveness.

Sharing your passion with others will not only enlighten them to your dedication and commitment, it can enable you to garner their participation, collaboration, cooperation, and endorsement.

When we are deeply passionate about something, the obstacles or challenges are diminished by sheer will and desire.

When you want something badly enough, it does not matter whether it is going to be easy. The passion will push you forward.

When people are not passionate about their goals, everything is more of a struggle.

Passion is the fire that gets us moving and keeps us motivated regardless of what roadblocks impede the way.

When your passion is aligned with your purpose, you are unstoppable! It is in that zone of high octane congruence that you are turned on and "cooking with gas.

Passionate people are great about discovering what lights their fire and going for it. They might be encouraged by others who share their passion, but they don’t rely on others to tell them what they need to do or how they need to do it.

When you take the high road to living a virtuous life, you are fortified by knowing that regardless of what life throws your way or what storms may rage, you are grounded in goodness. In this, you secure not only your own integrity, but you secure it in the eyes others.

Think of the people whom you love, like, trust, and admire. Isn’t their integrity the golden thread which elevates them to a higher standard in your eyes and in your heart?

1. “Being able to depend on a person’s integrity lays a solid foundation for a relationship built on trust, both in business and in life.

7. “When a foundation is built following sound structural principles, with solid, high-quality materials, anything that is layered on top is more secure, durable, and resilient. Your integrity works the same way.

When a foundation is built following sound structural principles, with solid, high-quality materials, anything that is layered on top is more secure, durable, and resilient. Your integrity works the same way.

As with construction, your personal integrity is the firm foundation upon which you can build a strong character, rewarding life, and healthy relationships.

Through change and challenge, if our personal foundations are built with quality virtues of character and integrity, we are more resilient, healthy, and ultimately more impressive.

Throughout the history of mankind, the virtues embraced by humanity have remained true, unwavering, and consistent.

While many may claim that these virtues are old-fashioned, they are essential materials for building a solid and worthwhile foundation for your life that will never go out of style.

Our modern-day society is often so consumed with external appearances that living a virtuous life may sound boring and dull. However, the love and beauty that lies deep within the human spirit resonates with plain and simple goodness.

Integrity, once tarnished, or broken, is hard to recover.

While having a strong character foundation may not sell newspapers, increase TV ratings, or make a person famous, it's essential for building a life that is meaningful and matters.

Have you ever known a person who was highly intelligent, yet their lack of character destroyed your impression of them? Even though they may have been accomplished, articulate, and knowledgeable, their words became impotent and irrelevant.

Making money and being prosperous is a wonderful place to be, but not at the expense of your ethics, integrity, and reputation. It is simply not worth it. It nixes any chance of creating trusted working relationships.

Authentic people are instantly more likable and trustworthy, which makes building rapport with them a pleasure.

We crave real people and are delighted when we find them.

Own your truths—all of them. Be honest. Be genuine. Be straightforward. Be refreshing!

Allow your natural personality to shine through without pretending to be someone you're not, or you may be stuck with that label forever.

Walking in alignment with your integrity will help you stay on the right track.

There is a reason that the words natural, wholesome, and organic resonate throughout our culture today. Aim to be natural and truly who you are one-hundred percent of the time.

We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to contribute.

Sometimes we meet folks who appear rather plain, yet when they speak from a heart of service, love, compassion, and wisdom, they instantly become respected favorites.

Authenticity is the litmus test for the honesty, transparency, and trust which are necessary for healthy relationships.

Authenticity respects the ebb and flow between positive and negative. The people who really know you will understand that you are not always going to be in a happy place and an occasional bad mood is acceptable.

By authentically sharing when things aren’t right you allow the people you care about to offer the support you may need.

Living in alignment with your true self enables you to cultivate transparency and unshakable authenticity.

Admittedly, there will be times when you must interact on a superficial level and adjust your behavior to fit in, go along and get along.

Not everyone is always going to like you. What impresses one person may turn another away. To thine own self be true.

Interestingly, being yourself allows others to be themselves. Even with crazy imperfections, being a bona fide genuine person is the best any of us can be—messy flaws and all!

Authentic people are so comfortable in their own skins they make us more comfortable in our own.

She is so secure in her beautifully imperfect self that she would welcome you with open arms, no judgment, and complete acceptance.

Do you generally feel uncomfortable around people whom you perceive to be perfect? Is there really such a thing as the perfect person? Of course not! Our flaws are often what differentiates us from each other, and no person is perfect.

I am a recovering perfectionist, and like all in recovery, I do better some days than others!

Authenticity isn’t just about saying “this is who I am”—it is also about being flexible enough to recognize and appreciate the uniqueness in others—honoring the mutual respect for being authentic and true.

Why did I think that the mask was a better portrayal than my authentic self? We can get hidden under layers of illusion, can’t we?

As a young girl, I allowed my self-esteem to be determined by others’ opinions, and I devoted incredible energy tuning into how everyone else felt.

As a lifetime people pleaser, I remember trying to mold myself into the person I thought other people wanted me to be—all for the sake of being liked and accepted. It caused more pain than gain.

Do you really want people to like you for something that you’re not? It takes a lot of energy to pretend to be someone else for the sake of pleasing others.

The challenge of being authentic for people pleasers is that we really want people to like and accept us. Being vulnerable, however, requires that we come to terms with the fact that not everyone is going to like us, and that it is okay. Not everyone needs to like us.

Integrity is a most valued human quality.

Your integrity is your personal code of honor and has the power to build your reputation or destroy it, establish credibility or crumble it—in one swift move.

Your personal integrity, defined as being honest and having strong moral principles, communicates whether (or not) you can be trusted.

Life’s most amazing moments between people are built on trust, communication, acceptance, and love.

The days of the pushy salesmen and self-serving narcissists are over. That type of behavior quickly alienates and pushes people away because it offends and can’t be trusted.

People must believe that you are real and are who you say you are, otherwise they will not want to do business with you, much less make the effort to move forward in starting and building a relationship.

When I meet someone who is truly genuine, I am drawn to their personality and find them easier to approach, engage, and interact with. They have no hint of false pretense, nor do I worry about hidden agendas.

Passion gives you direction. It serves as an inner compass that links you to action.

When you choose a career that is aligned with your passion, the work becomes irrelevant because anticipation and fulfillment can outweigh everything.

When employees lack passion, it is nearly impossible to deliver excellent customer service. Doesn’t it make you less inclined to want to do business with them as well?

When an employee, a team, or a company is passionate about their products and services, I am more inclined to bring them my business. Aren’t you?

It can't be taught to all, but people who deliver exceptional work, merely by relaying their passion through what they say and do in the workplace, are priceless.

When employees are motivated and love what they do you will see higher productivity, less turnover, healthier communication, increased loyalty, and a happier environment.

Put the right people in the right positions to ensure their personal strengths and talents are being utilized and appreciated.

If you want to improve performance and productivity, set a vision that inspires and delights.

I simply needed to excavate passion lost by being resilient, resolving the blockages, and healing. As soon as I did, the passion, and joy, burst forth.

Think about the things in life that elicit passion in you and make you happy.

Do you have a dream or desire that is burning a hole in your soul? Something that lights your fire and brings you simple pleasure?

Passion is at the heart of your motivation. Let it fuel your spirit and feed your joy. It is your catalyst for courageous pursuits—and it will provide you the stamina to stick with it.

Love is one of our most profound emotions and enduring qualities for living a life that matters.