Follow Your Passion Is Not Exclusively Meant As Career Advice

The advice to “follow your passion” was once bold and daring. Now it has become so commonplace that if someone isn’t following their passion they’re looked at confusingly. As if they were wearing shorts in the cold of winter. Yet, like so much cliché advice given, the meaning of it has shifted. All you’re left with is the hallow line on repeat — follow your passion.

Two abrupt challenges arise when you try to heed this advice — first; what is your passion, and second, how do you follow it. These answers were not well explained in the advice so easily doled out.

Most people’s instinct to follow their passion is applied to their career — find something you love and do it. And if working for someone else is frustrating then start your own thing. This is where the wheels come off.

feeling as if you need to monetize and be fulfilled with everything you do is a tall order, especially when applied to your career

The idea to follow your passion is not exclusively meant as career advice. Yet, that is the common interpretation. Feeling as if you need to monetize and be fulfilled with everything you do is a tall order, especially when applied to your career. As a result of this advice being so readily given it puts a lot of pressure on you to know, and seamlessly execute your passion.

Which is why so many of us are panicked trying to figure out our passion. You don’t want to misstep or do something unfulfilling — you would be the one looked upon awkwardly. So you wait, wonder and research to create this perfect alignment of talent and opportunity before taking action. Or if you’re in a role that doesn’t fully recognize and encourage your passion you feel you need to move on.

passion is doing something that brings you joy, something that makes you feel creative

This isn’t what’s meant by follow your passion. Passion is doing something that brings you joy, something that makes you feel creative. If your passion is writing, then write. Tell stories and share ideas through your love of words. Enjoy your craft. If some of that gets utilized in your career, wonderful. It doesn’t all have to happen at once, today, or along the same arc as someone else. It’s not an all of nothing game — there is more than one way to do everything. Sometimes your career is just your career. You can enjoy it; it can be fun and use elements of your creativity. But your passion is explicit and without other peoples rules. It is a release of creativity and personal expression — one we all need to feel alive.

That’s why the hardest thing to do is turn your passion into a successful career or business. Feeling like you need to monetize your passion is a great way to kill it. Wrapping your passion so tightly around your career has adverse consequences. Mainly, your creativity suffers when you get frustrated. This causes a domino affect to your confidence, self-esteem, opportunities, health, finances and so on. It is hard enough to manage the ups and downs of a career, but when that career is required to be your passion and fulfilling at all times it’s impossible to maintain. Stop trying to force your passion into a box it isn’t designed for. Also don’t ignoring your passion.

Learning how to explore and express your passion is needed before you could even consider turning it into a career. If there is an opportunity to do so, follow it, but don’t force it because it appears others are doing it. Create because you enjoy it. Doing so will open up opportunities and ideas you didn’t expect. Be patient along the way. Be persistent with your passion and enjoy the process.

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