Dear Money Making Friend,

History is choc-full of people who were driven to success by their passion to achieve a particular goal...

The Wright brothers didn't strap themselves to a couple of planks of wood and a hand-made engine on December 17th 1903 "for a laugh".

They did so because of their passion and desire to prove that man was capable of flight. Their maiden voyage lasted 12 seconds, and they reached the dizzy altitude of 10 feet – but they did it.

Columbus didn't just order 'anchors up' on 3 August 1492 because he was bored. He did so because he had a passion for exploring the world and wanted to find previously uncharted lands. He discovered America (thanks Chris!)

When Crick and Watson discovered the 'double helix' structure of DNA on February 28, 1953, they weren't fiddling about in their laboratory with a handful of Lego bricks and some straws.

They had a passion for molecular science and a desire to unlock the secrets of life.

An all-consuming passion to achieve something significant can carry you a long way in life. Combine that desire with energy, talent and determination and you have a recipe for success.

But without that passion, it can be difficult – really difficult. If you've ever had a job you hated, you'll know how hard it is to motivate yourself to give 100% every day.

Passion, on the other hand, is the great sustainer.

It keeps you focused on doing a great job, even when you've had a few days of slow sales.

It keeps you toasty-warm inside when you can't afford to pay your heating bills.

It keeps you glued to your laptop writing an e-letter at two in the morning when you're exhausted (trust me on that one).

So what am I saying to you?

Simply: Nothing spectacular was ever achieved without all-consuming passion.

Without passion, there'd be no Beatles. No Clifton Suspension Bridge. No Penicillin. No iPod. No Ferrari 250 GTO - and, quite possibly, no you.

Passion is the one thing that separates the really successful home entrepreneurs from those who never make a penny and give up after a few months.

You can see what I'm driving at here, can't you?

If your goal is to be financially independent at some stage in your life you'll need that fire in your belly.

I'm not saying you have to come over all Italian, burst into tears at the tiniest thing and start gesticulating wildly when you talk, just that you need to be passionate about the prospect of changing your life.

Without it, unless you get very lucky, it's unlikely you'll achieve your goals.

That sounds harsh... call it a home truth.

So how do you create passion?

Well here's the bad news. You can't.

You can't really manufacture desire. You've either got it or you haven't.

You can nurture it, fuel it and develop it – even tame it if it gets too wild. But it has to be there from the beginning – even if it's only a tiny pilot light, flickering away.

But here's the good news...

I'm guessing, as you read this email twice a week, that somewhere inside you exists that tiny flame of desire... just waiting for someone to come along with a can of petrol.

VWOOM!

The problem is, many people bury their passions deep under layers of responsibility: Their job, mortgage, family and financial worries.

In these cases, trying to fire-up that pilot light of passion is like trying to coax a 1971 Austin Mini into life on a cold, damp February morning.

Blummin' hard work, trust me.

How to turn your 'pash' into cash

You know what? It's a shame we're not more like children.

Kids communicate their desires more overtly. They're able to express what they want with an unabashed clarity and honesty.

They're not hung up or hamstrung by social convention and they don't allow the routine minutiae of life to hinder the pursuit of their dreams, god love 'em.

That is, until they grow up, get jobs, mortgages, families, car loans, credit cards, etc...

Greater responsibilities are inevitable as you grow older. But like a big stick, they tame, subdue and pacify us into compliant servitude.

Responsibility makes you feel silly, whimsical and guilty about even having desires, let alone indulging them.

That's why so many people abandon what once excited them in their youth and fall – almost willingly – into routines, patterns and jobs that serve no function other than to pay for increasingly expensive and – some would argue - increasingly meaningless "keep-up-with-the- joneses" lifestyles.

Desire gives your life back that meaning.

It motivates you to get up in the morning, and gives you relentless energy to keep going way past your bedtime.

It invigorates and revivifies you – makes you more outgoing, cheerful, optimistic and, yes, child-like.

And if you can connect it up to a really good home business idea, that passion can make you a LOT of money.

So you see how important it is to find that spark of passion within you... to nurture it, indulge it and watch it grow.

I promise you, the effort you put in now to cultivate your passion will pay you back in spades later.

I'm sensing a question...

How to reconnect with your passions

Well, to begin with, you've got to know that there's a burning desire, buried somewhere within you to achieve something significant.

However dim the flame is right now, if it's there, we can work with it.

If you don't have that spark hidden somewhere inside - for something other than work, material possessions and debt servitude - I really don't know what I can say to help.

Like I said earlier, I'm assuming you DO want to be financially independent sometime soon... that you DO want to start making money... and that you DO want all the joys and freedoms that kind of life brings with it.

Stop and think about that for a moment.

Imagine yourself in that picture... one where most of your time is your own... where you have more than enough money to enjoy your life for the rest of your life... where you don't have a boss breathing down your neck... where you don't have to check price tags when you walk into posh shops, showrooms or fancy restaurants...

Do you feel the feint stirrings of something inside?

That's your pilot light flickering!

That's what you have to concentrate on and indulge.

It can be a long, hard road, let me tell you. There are plenty of times you'll want to give up because you're knackered or things don't appear to be working out.

You'll come to rely heavily on your passion in these moments of doubt.

But, so long as you have that passion, you'll have more moments of joy, believe me.

Working hard to make your own money won't seem like a chore when your desire is fully fired- up - you won't feel like a frazzled workaholic, like you may do now in your day job - it'll feel exciting and motivating... like you're actually working towards something significant and meaningful.

And things will definitely start to happen for you... just as they have for tens of thousands of successful home entrepreneurs across the country.

Now isn't that an exciting start to the day?

If you are looking for some business opportunities and money making ideas which you think you could be passionate about visit our Monay Making Ideas page. You will also find other articles on how you can make more money this year. From time management, creating a successful business, to turning your hobby into a profitable business.