Mindset
A Passionate Eye
“Skills are cheap. Passion is priceless.”
— Gary Vaynerchuk
I recently listened to the Huberman Lab podcast featuring a guest I know and deeply respect—Stuart McMillan. Stu is not just a friend and colleague; he’s an exceptional performance coach with the soul of an artist. And that’s exactly what makes him extraordinary.
Listening to this episode was like savoring a Michelin three-star meal—layered, refined, and deeply satisfying. You could feel Stu’s passion pour through every word—his love for all things sprinting and speed was palpable.
Andrew Huberman, for his part, was masterful. He pulled threads, explored ideas, and played in the intellectual sandbox with Stu, moving fluidly between the technical and the almost metaphysical.
As I listened, I found myself not just absorbing information but reflecting deeply—on my own ideas, my own methods, and my own journey.
One of the biggest lightbulbs for me was Stu’s reflection on the relationship between passion and creativity. It hit me hard. I’ve long believed that the essence of life is to find one’s creative path—or paths—and to walk them constantly. To explore the edges of possibility through mind and body.
Whether our creative expression is intellectual, artistic, physical, or spiritual, there’s a universal pull. Humans are wired for creativity. It’s a magnet we all carry—whether we answer the call or not.
But too often, this innate creativity gets domesticated. Replaced by responsibility. Trained out of us by systems that value output over exploration. Now, I’m not saying we should reject responsibility or abandon duty. These are important parts of life. But they shouldn’t replace our higher purpose.
Creativity led by passion is expansive. It opens the mind to new perspectives and allows for innovation. It gives us the freedom to explore, to make mistakes, to imagine.
It also teaches us to be gentle with ourselves.
Because the truth is—we may not discover our passion early in life. Sometimes we need to live a lot before we understand what lights our fire. That’s okay.
And here’s a big one: passion is not obsession.
I think this gets misunderstood all the time. Obsession can look like passion on the outside, but it’s often rooted in fear or a need to control. It’s perfectionism in disguise. It’s a mind stuck in overdrive, unable to pause, to zoom out, or to let go.
Obsession leads to judgment—of self, of others. Nothing is ever enough. You’re not doing enough. They’re not doing it right. You’re not good enough. Neither are they.
But what even is “good enough”? Who decides?
A passionate soul can pause. They can step away from their pursuit, explore new things, experience joy outside their craft. Passion allows space. It creates room for growth, connection, and renewal.
Obsession doesn’t. It’s rigid. It’s consuming. And when mixed with perfectionism, it becomes toxic. It strangles the very creativity it seeks to express.
Passion, on the other hand, is a healthy pursuit. It asks you to listen. To feel. To trust.
To be in it.
Stu is still an artist. Before coaching became his medium of expression, he explored art, music, and writing. He played soccer. He moved. His curiosity about movement led him to the rhythms, shapes, and cadence of sprinting. That became his canvas.
It’s the passionate pursuit of a worthy ideal. That’s success.
So I’ll leave you with this:
What lights your fire?
What are you passionately pursuing right now?
