What “Do What You Love and The Rest Will Follow” Actually Means
We’ve all gotten this advice, but people often misunderstand how to execute on it. Let’s clear it up.
There’s nothing quite like a piece of seemingly sage wisdom to make you feel inspired and ready to kick off in the direction of your dreams.
Similar to advice like:
“The only thing that’s keeping you from getting what you want is the story you keep telling yourself.” — Tony robins
“You can do anything you put your mind to.”
“Do what you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.”
I find that last one particularly irksome. You can (and should) enjoy your work, but work is work. You treat something you’re doing professionally, no matter how much you love it, differently than something you do for fun. I understand the sentiment, but I think believing that what you do won’t feel like work (at least a few days a week) is misleading.
The problem with all of this advice, from my perspective, is that it’s not actionable. First of all, how do you figure out what you love to do? And second of all, what does “the rest will follow” actually mean?
Does it mean that once you figure out what you love to do (or if you know what you’re passionate about and you “simply” commit to it), that everything else seamlessly falls into place?
That’s what it sounds like. But I’m pretty sure that’s not the reality. I like Gillian Anderson’s version:
“Just remember, you can do anything you set your mind to, but it takes action, perseverance, and facing your fears.”
What follows is my interpretation of how to understand and execute on this ambiguous but inspiring saying.
First: Figure Out What You Love to Do
*If you happen to be one of the lucky few that already knows what you love to do, you can skip this step.
Personally, I find that the easiest path towards figuring out what you love is identifying what you’re good at, but also know you enjoy doing professionally.
For example, I love running, but I’m not going to go out and become a professional ultrarunner. I know that having an extremely regimented training routine would destroy the sport for me. I also love cooking, but I wouldn’t be happy slaving over a hot stove for hours every day to feed strangers. I’m no chef and have no desire to open my own restaurant.
It’s not enough to just make a list of things that you love doing. For a lucky few, turning a hobby into a profession can be a dream come true. But for most of us, we would never want to ruin our hobbies by getting paid to do them day in and day out, and enduring the pressure and expectations that come along with that.
Just identifying what you love is misguided. It makes way more sense to begin by thinking about what you are naturally pretty good at.
What have people always complimented you on? What part of your current job do you enjoy the most? What part of your work do you look forward to? What subject did you enjoy studying the most in college or high school?
Treat this as an internal investigation. Go as far back in your personal history as required.
For example, I was the kid who spent the entire weekend reading in my room. I wrote book reports that were almost longer than the books themselves. I always over-read the reading assignments in English class.
I love to read, and I love to write, but I never really considered being a writer. I pursued acting, and when I decided that might not work out I added on an English major.
So when I left my last marketing job, unhappy and bored in my role, and started searching for what I should be doing — suddenly it seemed so obvious. Like the elephant in the room.
I had always been a writer, but never had the confidence or the means to pursue it.
That’s the kind of discovery you’re looking for.
Second: Figure Out What Doing What You Love Actually Looks Like
Congratulations, you have identified what you enjoy doing, and have a natural knack for. Now, how do you apply that? How do you turn it into a career?
This is as difficult as the first step, or harder, which is another reason why I take issue with “the rest will follow.”
If you decide you want to be an artist, for example, there are almost an infinite number of directions you can go with that, like:
- Becoming a graphic designer
- Or a cartoonist
- Illustrator
- Maybe a painter (Watercolor? Acryllic? Ink? Landscapes? Houses?)
- A tattoo artist
- A teacher
- Makeup artist
Honestly, for most people, this step requires experimentation. You need to try a couple of different variations before you know what manifestation you enjoy or do not enjoy.
But here are a couple of questions that, once you establish the answers to, can be helpful in determining the best path forward:
- What’s your preferred job title and description? Exercise: Write your ideal job description, as if you were advertising for a role you want to fill.
- Do you like working for other people, or yourself?
- What kind of workplace setting do you prefer? Office or remote?
- Do you like variety in your work, or do you prefer to do one type of task, and do it well?
- In the perfect world, what kind of company would you like to work for?
- Do you care how much money you make, above and beyond being able to make ends meet without stress?
- How much do you value work/life balance?
First, you need to decide what category within your chosen field you’re going to pursue. With the artist example — what kind of art do you like to do?
Once you establish your category, then go through the list above and answer the questions for yourself, to the best of your ability. Now you have your criteria, you can proceed to the next step.
Third: Do Your Research
You know what you want and what you don’t want. Now you have to set about manifesting your destiny.
If you decided you like working for someone else and you’ve chosen your ideal type of company, you need to do some research. Find those companies doing the kind of work that inspires you. I would aim for a list of at least 10 companies you find interesting, with decent benefits, and a strong Glassdoor rating.
If there’s one thing I have discovered over the years, it’s that there’s no perfect job. Even a job that appears to be exactly what you are looking for will have flaws. Similarly to dating, the trick is figuring out if those flaws are deal-breakers.
Another similarity is the fact that the more you have figured out about what you’re looking for, the higher the likelihood that you’ll find a good match.
When you figure out what you love doing, and then do the work of breaking down the logistics of what it will mean to make a career out of that — what you want and need in order to make it work — it increases your odds of success.
If you decided you want to work for yourself, start by finding other people who are already doing what you want to do, and have written about it. You want to gather up all the advice you can in order to stand on the shoulders of giants.
Medium is a great resource for this. There are dozens of different “how to” and advice columns from others who have gone into freelancing and self-employment.
Fourth: Create an Action Plan
I’m talking about a literal step-by-step guide.
If you are going to be job hunting, it might look like this:
- Build out a portfolio. Whether that’s writing clips, artwork samples, or case studies. Be prepared to provide examples of your work.
- Contact any possible references, and prepare them to speak to specific aspects of your skillset.
- Update resume
- Update cover letter template
- Update LinkedIn profile so it’s consistent with resume
- Apply for jobs at these companies: x, y, z
- Follow up
And so on.
If you’re starting your own company, it might look like:
- Buy a domain
- Put up a simple website
- Decide if it makes sense to establish an LLC
- Open a business banking account
- Write mission, vision, brand and voice statements
- Update LinkedIn
- Ideal client list:
And so on.
While you’re at it, it would be a great idea to create a long-term plan. The best way to ensure your life turns out the way you want it to is to envision where you want to be in 10 years. In exactly 10 years time, everything gong to plan, what does your life look like? And then work backward.
Check out Debbie Milman’s 10 Year Plan For a Remarkable Life.
Fifth: Execute the Plan
Now you need to start hustling.
You’ve got your action plan, it’s time to execute.
Once you’ve got everything updated and looking sharp, take that list of companies and get on their websites to see if they’re hiring. If they are, lucky you! Time to apply. If they’re not, see if you can set up an alert for when they post new jobs that match your criteria.
If you’re going into business for yourself, you need to lay the foundation. Once you start reaching out to your network and target client list, there’s a good chance you’ll get busy, and fast.
Make sure you have everything in place to support your rise to self-employment stardom. Hint: a lot of this has to do with organizing your finances, opening a business account, being prepared to track your invoices, etc.
In Conclusion:
This saying has merit, and you can absolutely make it work for you, but it’s not a hands-off approach.
By doing what you love, you won’t dread going to work in the morning. Your work will feel important, invigorating, and ultimately worth spending your precious time on this planet doing it.
It doesn’t mean it will be easy, or every day your work will be pure joy. That’s bullshit. There will probably still be a few days when you won’t feel like doing whatever it is you do, but you’ll have to anyway. But days like this will be significantly fewer.
And honestly it’s pretty natural to feel like that occasionally, and for the greater good to push through it.
Sometimes I don’t feel like going for a run, but 99% of the time, I’m glad I did. Sometimes I don’t feel like writing, but I know that I will improve at my craft the more I do it and that it’s a discipline I need to have to be able to sit down and produce content. Writer’s write. Practice makes perfect.
Get out there a crush it.
