Much Ado About Work = Passion
Posted on May 04, 2020 by Gina DeRosa, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
Should find a job/career you are passionate about OR if you should just treat a job like A Job and otherwise pursue passions outside of work?
(Original blog post from 11/24/2019. See all posts on Sixth Gear Series’ site.)
“It’s your place in the world; it’s your life. Go on and do all you can with it, and make it the life you want to live.” – Mae Jemison
Some folks from Harvard Business School released an article last week that cautioned readers about trying to find work they are passionate about, instead encouraging them to pursue passions outside of work. This seems to be a hot topic right now, so I’m jumping on the bandwagon.
I’m often approached by people who are not happy with their current job or career choice altogether, and are looking for a change. There’s always more to this story, though, and when people ask me if they should find a job/career they are passionate about OR if they should just treat a job like A Job and otherwise pursue passions outside of work, my education, training, and life experience thus far leads me to respond with the highly complex yet obvious response of…
…it depends.
I can’t take sides on this, and I won’t – not just because I’m a coach who supports clients’ individualized goals, but also because different approaches work uniquely per person. I know people who practice on both sides of that question, and some are super happy, some are miserable, some are content, and some don’t give a hoot.
So, think about these questions for yourself:
1) At this point in your life, what are you passionate about?
2) At this point in your life, do you want to get paid to fulfill that passion?
3) If Yes, do you want to make this into a full-time job or a part-time job? If No, do you want to fulfill this passion during your work hours or on your own time?
Currently, I have a traditional full-time job in addition to running my coaching business, the latter of which bookends my Day Job hours. On weekdays I have coaching sessions between 6-8am and 5-8pm and on weekends I meet with clients at variable times. Additionally, when not meeting with clients during those times, I perform administrative tasks like brushing up my website, responding to leads, and writing my blog, or I attend networking events and volunteer my time at career-oriented activities hosted by schools and organizations, such as mock interviews and résumé critiques. People often ask me, “Are you quitting your day job to work on your business?” My response is a polite but swift, “No.”
I love coaching and running my own small but mighty business, AND I really enjoy my Day Job. I am really passionate about helping people, and I get to do that through both gigs, and in different ways. Plus, there are a bunch of other personal reasons I do both. However, who knows what the future holds for me, between the potential occurrence of things I don’t have control over and the possibility that I might develop new passions and interests.
There are many ways to reframe your perspective on work. One thing that I have in common with the folks at Harvard Business School is the understanding that doing what you are passionate about will help you bring your best self to work, whether you’re doing it on the boss’s clock or on your own.
If you care even a little bit about engaging in activities that you’re passionate about, then the most important thing is to identify what you are passionate about and then figure out how you want to fulfill it, period. There are no rules behind the who/what/when/where/why/how of this for any one of us; what works for you may not work for your buddy or Mom or neighbor, so spend no time comparing yourself to others and more time figuring out where in your 24/7 you will plug in the stuff you want to do. Whether you live to work or work to live, what would it be like to do more of what you love to do?
