Don't Follow your Passion
Don’t Chase Money. Don’t Follow Passion. Pursue Career Capital
Following your Passion is Bad Advice
And I say this as somebody who only does stuff I’m passionate about. But for me to get to this point, I had to do the total opposite.
Instead of pursuing passion, pursue Career Capital. Become so competent that you have the leverage to design a life of passion & interest. More of what you like, less of what you don’t like.
This is life on easy mode. This is lifestyle design 101. This is the framework I used to go from grinding in a midwestern basement in an industry I hated to living a life of autonomy & independence.
You Need to Dig Deeper
Have you ever asked yourself why you should follow your passion?
I ask people this and am met with blank stares. Passion isn’t specific enough.
What you really want is to love what you do for a living. To live a life that’s aligned with your interests and values.
This is tangible. Rational. You’re going to work every week for the rest of your life. Doing work that you enjoy (or at least don’t hate) will drastically improve not only career outcomes, but life outcomes.
Passions are Rare and Vague
We’re so desperate to grasp onto a passion we confuse interests for life missions.
The all-too-common cycle:
Become interested in something
Make it your entire identity
Get bored of it
Have an identity crisis
Interests change over time. Unless you’re a literal savant, the chance of you being obsessed with the same thing you were obsessed with as a teen are slim to none
Passion ≠ Success
Matching the content of your work to pre-existing interest is not a major indicator of success in that field.
There are plenty of people who build jobs out of hobbies that are MISERABLE
The amateur photographer who is miserable running a photography agency
The baker who is miserable running their bakery
The home cook who needs to hop on Prozac after starting their food truck
Pursuing your Passion Professionally Often Ruins It
Making passion profitable carries unintended baggage
Lifelong artists start doing commission pieces and end up despising their craft
Turning something you want to do in something you have to do is a recipe for resentment.
The thing that makes you love your work is not just liking the topic, it’s the sense of autonomy, competency, and RESULTS that come from your work.
Don’t follow your passion. Follow the goal of ending up passionate about your work
So what do you do instead?
Build Career Capital
Career capital is anything that can be leveraged to secure better opportunities, job terms, and career success over time.
Skills & Expertise
Network
Reputation & Credentials
Work Experience
Personal Brand
These are invaluable assets that let you get what you want out of your professional life.
Don’t chase money. Don’t follow passion. Pursue Career Capital
The more of these you acquire, the more leverage you have to build a professional life that aligns with your goals & interests.
More of what you like, less of what you hate.
Become Rare, Become Valuable
The market rewards scarce & valuable skills. Become good at something in a way that very few people can replicate.
The best way to do this is to combine categories. Don’t try to dominate a domain, try to create your own
Combine multiple categories based on your skills & interests. Finds stuff that you’re good at, enjoy, and that has high demand.