When life pushes us to realize our hidden passion...

I have been wanting to blog for some time now – wanting is a big word. More like thinking I should, because that is what everyone does and it makes good marketing sense – after all I should be able to write some things about my passion and interest. Well, finally tonight on this lovely June 13 evening I have made strides and decided to begin writing.

I, being a Marketing enthusiast, love everything marketing- digital, print, events, communication etc. While in Business school I had high dreams of being in the field and reaching the heights of the marketing echelon. I was ambitious and determined to go all the way. I wanted my MBA and even began the program a couple of times but life got in the way and it was left unaccomplished.

Sometimes life has an interesting way of showing us new paths and the emergence of passions that we did not know we had. This is one of those times.

A few years ago, due to unforeseen circumstances, I parted with my full-time employment which although was a good stable job, wasn’t my passion nor what I had studied to do. Nonetheless, it was a good stable, and comfortable job. I was with a great team of people and was good at doing the work. However, there was no passion, no determination, or love for the work. After I found myself unemployed, I began working short-term contracts and some retail work. I was a single mother and needed an income to pay bills until I found employment in my field.

One day, when I was at a Persian store buying Barbari (an amazing flatbread that is one of the signature Breads in Iran (click for recipe), is when a new passion emerged. While I was waiting in line to pay for my bread and some other Persian nick-knacks, another customer ahead of me asked the store owner, Mohsen Agha (Mr.), if he had the traditional Persian Bastani (Bastani is Ice-cream)? He responded ‘na baba (meaning no way) – I have to bring it from Toronto and it will melt by the time it gets here. Jokingly I uttered, well I could make it for you? It was at that moment that ‘a new passion’ emerged. That sentence which was really meant to be more of a joke (or was it? Hmmm) turned into what I used to make for myself into a gig to which - four years later is still going. Though still small, the passion is still alive and it fuels the small venture. We have made slow steady progress. Even though is not a full-time job and more like a hobby, I put my 100% passion into it. Even though I have held professional work I am schooled for (and enjoy and have a passion for), even though I went back to school and completed another school program adding to my skills and education, I kept up with my business - that is Passion.

While I am a passionate professional business marketer, dedicated to community service work and nonprofit organizations, I also am passionate about my nostalgic treats and love the sense of accomplishment it gives me to make, bake, sell, market, fulfill and deliver orders.

To have passion is not enough – along with it, there must be determination, conviction and love. It is a desire that gets you to do amazing things and even some that you might not have realized you wanted to do before. With passion, even though some days are tough the work gets done and we inch forward. One of those steps forward is this coming week. We are going to attend the outdoor farmers market at the Covent Garden Market and, we are excited beyond belief for this opportunity. We are trying it out and that is where it all starts.

So mark your calendars and come out to see us on Thursday June 17th 4pm-7pm at the Covent Garden Market.

p.s Whew that was not as hard as I had imagined J. Is this a new passion realized? ;) We will see.