Why Following Your Passion Might Be Misguided

A Critical Perspective

The mantra 'follow your passion' has been a staple of career advice for decades, touted as the key to both personal satisfaction and professional success. However, this seemingly harmless encouragement may be more misleading than motivational.

In fact, I believe that the advice to young people to "follow their passion" can be detrimental.

Let’s explore why blindly following your passion might not be the wisest path and discuss evidence from literature that supports this perspective.

The Myth of Pre-existing Passion

Cal Newport's "So Good They Can't Ignore You" debunks the passion hypothesis - the idea that the key to occupational happiness is first to identify a pre-existing passion and then to find a job that matches this passion.

Relying on passion alone can lead to frustration and a perpetual search for satisfaction that may never be fulfilled.

Frankly, it can also create a spiral effect when as one ages, passions change.

I’m sure you can think back to the activities that excited you ten years ago, and realize that they’re not even in the same ballpark of things that get you going now.

I remember my Father telling me that a dear friend of his went to Law School at the age of forty. His rationale why he chose to study law at such an advanced age was profound. He said "I'm the victim of the decision of an eighteen year old."

The Importance of Skill and Mastery

In his book, Newport introduces the concept of 'career capital,' which refers to the skills and expertise you accumulate in a field. He suggests that job satisfaction comes from mastery and the autonomy and respect that proficiency brings.

All satisfaction comes from mastery - not chasing an ideal that is utterly unattainable. Mastery also allows for you to apply your skills to multiple endeavors in multiple fields -if you choose so.

At a job you hate? Find your one thing.

It just came to you as you read this, I know it did - that one thing that everyone comes to you for. Deep dive there.

Are you the best in your office at creating excel spreadsheet?

Creating a Powerpoint?

Writing a blog or speech?

Now go and become a master of that skill.

This view aligns with the research of psychologists like Angela Duckworth, who in her book "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance," emphasizes the blend of passion and perseverance - grit - as a more reliable predictor of success than passion alone.

Really what Duckworth is saying is that if you can stick with something you're interested in long enough with enough sustained effort, great things will happen.

I've even changed the type of encouragement I offer my daughters, Talia (15), and Olivia (12). I share how much I love the effort they put into their successful endeavors. Not the just the results.

A good example is that when I see them studying, I'll typically give them a hug and tell them how proud I am of their work ethic. I reinforce this by sharing that I don't care what grade they get - as long as they put in the effort and tried their best.

The Evolution of Interest

In "Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us," Daniel H. Pink discusses how motivation in the workplace is driven more by autonomy, mastery, and purpose than by traditional rewards and recognition.

He suggests that passions are developed over time, not simply discovered.

This evolving interest approach implies that passion can be cultivated in various fields, provided there is commitment and a willingness to grow.

So what does this mean in the real world?

The way I interpret this advice is that you have to do a lot of terrible jobs to find your real passion. For some this may not be true. For most, I tend to think it's true.

For example: when I was in college, I used to work on a construction crew to make cash during the Summer. I called this job my "motivation for higher education." Meaning, that when I would get back to school in September I had a newfound motivation to excel, and absorb as much as I could.

Takeaway: Working a job you hate will help you build the rails for your train to run on.

Market Realities and Passion

Passion also needs to be tempered with a sense of market realities. In "The Lean Startup," Eric Ries emphasizes the importance of flexibility and responsiveness to market needs in developing a successful business.

A passion pursued in a vacuum, without considering market demand, can lead to failed ventures and disappointment.

Balancing Passion with Pragmatism

Instead of the simplistic 'follow your passion' advice, a more balanced approach is prudent. This includes:

1. Developing Marketable Skills: Focus on acquiring skills that are in demand and can be honed to high levels of expertise. Taking online courses via Udemy or Coursera is a good start. Right now, AI is white hot. I recommend you spend time and effort learning as much as you can about how AI can impact your job and your industry positively. I’m 48 and I took an online course from MIT last year. It was so much fun. I highly recommend you invest the time and effort in yourself. You can find these courses online for free!
2. Adapting to Opportunities: Be open to evolving your interests based on opportunities that present themselves. I didn’t go to journalism school, but while attending an event in 2007, I was able to get a media pass because I reached out to a publication and offered to blog about the event for them. Those posts were the first pieces of published content I had ever created. This gave me the confidence to blog regularly. This all eventually led me to write books. Crazy.
3. Practical Experimentation: Test your interests against market realities. Engage in small-scale experiments to gauge the viability of your passion as a career.Want to be on TV - launch a Youtube channel.Want to compose music - start creating on Garage Band.
4. Seeking Fulfillment in Various Aspects of Life: Recognize that fulfillment can come from various aspects of life, not just career. Hobbies, volunteer work, and personal relationships can also be sources of passion and joy.For example: I recently joined School of Rock . Now I get to live out my rock and roll fantasies. ????

While pursuing your passion sounds enticing, it's essential to approach it with a blend of realism, flexibility, and a focus on skill development.

The journey to fulfillment and success is rarely a straight path but rather a winding road filled with learning, adaptation, and growth.

Remember, passion is not just found but developed and nurtured over time. You’re doing great.

Keep up the Good Work,

Chris

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