Passion vs Profession

 

There are people whose passion and profession coincide. They are happy and successful. It’s really great if you belong to this category. But I wonder if this phenomenon is possible at scale i.e every single person has a profession matching their passion. There are way too many people resigned to the fact that they don’t coincide. So they do nothing about either.

What is the solution?

It is OK to have a profession which is not your passion/interest. The most important thing is to BE EFFECTIVE in your day job. It is possible to be effective even if you are not passionate. In fact interest by itself doesn’t guarantee effectiveness. Businesses need effective employees. It only ensures that the effective employees stick.

Have a profession (day job) where you can deliver the solid results the business needs and you get compensated well for the time and energy you put in it. It is OK if you don’t feel an iota of passion here. I don’t breathe because I’m passionate about it. I breathe because it is necessary to live. And then use the evenings, nights and weekends to immerse yourself in your passion. Think of it as your business which you have to gestate, deliver, nurture, grow and thrive over a period of time.

Balancing passion and profession

PROFESSION

Be effective

Use it to support doing what you love

Focus on effectiveness and efficiency

PASSION

Dedicate time regularly

Use it to energize your profession

Focus on learning, expression and business viability

If things work out, you can pivot to make your passion your profession.
If not, you can still ride the two boats with a great sense of adventure and fulfillment.

PS. Originally published on May 24, 2017 on Medium.