Member-only story
Can You Afford To Follow Your Dreams Only When You’re Young and Good With Tech?
Notes from Paul Graham’s “When to Do What You Love.”
We all want to do work we love.
But is following your passion always the best move?
The truth is, passion alone doesn’t pay the bills — at least not right away.
I’ve always wanted to become a full-time writer but never really got to pursue this career path because of other obligations. I had to study, find a job, adjust to living alone in a new city, have a social life, and all the usual tasks that the GenZ and Millennials call “Adulting.”
When you’re adulting, how can you find time to follow your passion? I didn’t have the chutzpah to simply quit my job and start writing. If I didn’t have a steady inflow of cash every month, I’d panic. That’s why, for the majority of my adult life, the only writing I did was the occasional 3–4 poems every month.
I’m sure this is true for you, too. You’ll need money to support your lifestyle. For that, you need work that pays well. To follow your passion, you need fire in your heart. For that, you need to find work you truly enjoy. The question is, how to reconcile both?
