Happy Friday! Friday is most corporate-goers’ favorite day of the week. Perhaps it consists of an unhealty breakfast from McDonalds, excitement about weekend plans or just the simple joy of knowing you don’t have to get up for work the next morning.
Since I’ve been away from my favorite blogs this week, I spent some time catching up with Google Reader early this morning. After a very short time, I was thoroughly annoyed. I was looking for some unique entertainment, to learn something I didn’t know, or to hear some good stories. I found none of these things.
Every blog post seemed to be exactly the same:
- Pursue your passion!
- Escape the 9 to 5!
- Leave your job to travel the world!
- Buy this e-book!
- Live spontaneously!
- Be a positive person!
- 50 Days to your dreams!
- Pursue your passion!
- Cubical = Hell on Earth!
YUCK. Not only is this advice the last thing I want to hear about on a Friday morning, every blog post on every blog sounded exactly the same.
Apparently I need to add some new blogs to my RSS feed (please give me some new ones, I’m dying here) and I need to delete some too. Reading all of these posts made me feel like my generation is living in a weird bubble when it comes to their career. Perhaps you could call it la la land. In addition, many of us see success in only one way- and we’re kind of harsh about those who don’t conform.
I’m all about making a million dollars a year pursuing your passion. Who WOULDN’T be?! Like Rich DeMatteo says in his recent post, I’m all about Gary Vaynerchuk’s book Crush It (in fact, it’s one of my favorites that I recommend to everyone) but I do have some beef with this new hot button called “passion.” Definitely read Rich’s post because it really hits home with me.
What the hell does passion mean anyways?
I think we build the word up to be way more than it is. Dictionary.com says passion is: any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate. Pretty simple definition.
The “p-word” is losing it’s fire. It’s an idea. Maybe it’s a fantasy. It’s overused. It provides false hope amidst a recession. It sets internet marketers up to make money selling dreams rather than valuable products and services.
There is NOT one definition of success
Another point I’d like to make is that not everyone wants to work for themselves. Not everyone wants to leave their day job to travel around the world. Not everyone wants to sell all of their stuff and see where the wind takes them. Some people- GASP!- love their corporate jobs and are very happy moving up the ladder that way. Some people like money and want to buy nice cars with it. Some people like getting advacned degrees and going back to school.
Let’s let everyone define their own version of success.
Success looks very different for everyone, and I feel that many Gen Y bloggers are painting the picture only one way. Please stop. You’re starting to make people feel like they are settling just because they aren’t freelance writers living on a beach in an exotic country…
Matt Cheuvront wrote a great post called “Breaking Away from Generation Now.” Matt works for himself and fully acknowledges that his lifestyle is not for everyone. Thank you, Matt, for not making your readers fit into a little box.
As Rich says, Passion is PART of our career. For many, passions are pursued outside of work. And that’s ok!
Throw some fuel on the fire
- Do you feel the word “passion” is being overused in Gen Y blogs today?
- Do you feel like Gen Y defines success in only one way?
- What would you do if you had the option to:
- A. Take a job you liked that paid you $15,000 more than you make now, or
- B. Get a $10,000 salary cut to do something you are “passionate” about?
- Is taking the money such a bad thing?
I’d really like to hear your thoughts on this rant. Maybe I’m being unreasonable, but I had to share my thoughts.
Oh yeah, and please recommend some new blogs for me to subscribe to!
{ 38 comments… read them below or add one }
Good rant. I think you are right. Passion is overused. I must go check my own blog now.
In terms of the options you discuss, why can’t you have both? For me it is less about passion and more about the adrenaline kick that I get when I go to work. I love the “rush” that I get from my corporate job. And I’m paid well.
You definitely can have both! It’s really not as hard as you might think!
I do think the word passion is overused. In fact, I think of passion as a flame that only burns brightly for a short time. I don’t see how anyone could maintain such strong emotion over time. With that said, I would happily take either option. I tend to get a three to five year itch to switch jobs and try something new.
I can relate to the itch.
As far as passion goes, I think it is very cyclical. There are good times and bad times, but the flame never remains consistent.
Hey Nicole- thanks for the mention. I’ve been ready to spontaneously combust the last couple weeks from all the passion. My ears and eyes have actually been in pain every time i see the word.
To answer your questions:
YES – passion os way overused in Gen Y Blogs. Did some successful Gen X’ers and boomers carry their career with passion in mind? Sure, but I know others who are wildly successful and have an amazing life outside of work.
I’m torn on the second question. I think Gen Y bloggers carry on about passion and breaking away from 9-5, while the Gen Y non-bloggers work hard and play hard – climbing the corporate ladder and enjoying a Martini when they reach each rung.
Give me the $15,000 extra please. As long as it’s a flexible job and I somewhat like the employees and management, then I’ll take the money. If the job is flexible and I can see my family and friends and go on fun vacations, then I’m all for it.
Taking the money is not a bad thing. I have a passion for so many things that are non-career related. I love helping people (hiring people), so that’s why I’ve chosen talent selection/HR as my career, but that doesn’t mean I wake up everyday and say “I WANT TO FUCKING HIRE SOMEONE TODAY BITCHES!!!”. I’ll say – I can’t wait for next week when I’m going to Italy for 2 weeks…. And then I’ll thank my great corporate job for helping me pay for Italy….
Rich-
Hilarious re-inactment of the way Gen Y describes this supposed PASSION: “I WANT TO FUCKING HIRE SOMEONE TODAY BITCHES!!!” hahaha! I mean that right there is the perfect example!
Also, on the money- the catch on the $15,000 raise is that you LIKE the job! I didn’t say it is a job you hate!
I would take the money because as a young professional who hopes to buy a home, pay off debt and eventually buy a new car when mine shits out- money gets me there! PLUS!- Let’s not forget that you have “the other 8 hours” to pursue your “passions”, build a side income, or pursue other things. All in all, I think this is a win-win situation.
Nicole, I think you’ve made some great points here. There’s alot of people who do seem want to believe that their Gen Y ideals are the ones that everybody should follow. But, the reality is that it’s not for everybody. People can be in the corporate environment and still have passion. I’m in a corporate job and I actually love the work that I do. i also like the fact that there is a paycheck every month.
Anything I do in terms of blogs, passion projects, etc is stuff I do outside of work. Will it make me rich, probably not? Who knows? But everything I do on these passion projects translates into results in my working environment, so it all kind of works out. I do believe that everybody should have a passion project to supplement what they do. To quote you “a blog is like a career insurance policy.” I think that could be said about most passion projects.
Maybe I’m the exception to the Gen Y passion rule. Do I like what I do? Absolutely! But like Rich, I don’t really wake up every morning going OMG TODAY I WILL COMMUNICATE! More often I wake up going “Is it 7 already? Unnnnhhhh.” I’m starting my own business more for the flexibility and variety of projects offered by entrepreneurship. It IS a little suffocating working in a cubicle 9-5. I would love to be able to just take my laptop outside on a summer day and work there, or go for a mid-day jog or lunch date not bound by 1 hour of “break time”. That’s the appeal of entrepreneurship for me.
I think people in Gen Y mistake fulfillment for passion. Passion fades. It’s better to pursue a life where you make space for what you love about life – that’s fulfilling. Maybe your fulfulliment is a corporate job and climbing the ladder because that’s just what turns your crank. For me, although I can get along in the corporate world just fine, my version of a fulfilling, balanced life is elsewhere.
Love this! “Passion fades. It’s better to pursue a life where you make space for what you love about life – that’s fulfilling.”
Jill,
I totally agree with everything you are saying here. I’m one that sees (and lives) both sides of the coin- I have my own business and I work in a cubicle at a huge company by day.
You really hit it on the head: Gen Y’ers are mistaking passion for FULLFILLMENT. In fact, I wish I thought of that earlier because it is a much more consice and friendly way to display this argument!
Nicole
Passion is supposed to spark. The passion that I keep seeing instead of spark is fizzle. “Be passionate about your job or make your own work!” Okay, I’ll bite. But passion ain’t enough to make it happen. There’s got to be a goal. There’s got to be a tangible way to measure your growth and success, whether it’s through monetary goals or readership or whatever.
The SPARK passion – the really beautiful stuff that makes your heart go OOMPH – is the stuff that you NEED to do, regardless of business model or success. My Spark is writing. I get antsy when I don’t write. I don’t get paid for it, but it’s my Spark.
So screw the fizzle passion that you think you need in order to start your own business. All you need is a good idea, excellent work ethic, and goals. Liking it helps but hey, we can’t have everything.
Amanda,
I think we would get along quite well if we ever met in person. I like your energy.
Honestly, I think this whole Passion movement is a way for people to sell things online. “Life changing” products, “work on the beach for 2 hours a week,” “make millions while doing nothing!” BLAH. Have fun chasing a dream that will never come true…
Yes, SPARK starts the car, but goals and work get you to your destination.
PS- I totally hear you on writing being your spark- I feel weird when I don’t write too!
Thanks for your comment!
Nicole
Thanks for this post! It spoke right to what I have been mulling over in my head over the past little while. It seems like the ultimate dream is working for yourself. However, I am not sure that it is something that is feasible in my life right now or even something I want right now. At this point I want to make the mistakes on someone else’s dime and be able to leave my job when I come home. It think I would take the money!
Kayla,
There’s a great book called “Road Trip Nation” in which real recent college graduates interviewed tons of the best known CEO’s, executives, and career all stars. I noticed that many of them started out working for others. They did it for years. Some didn’t go out on their own until their 40’s. The stories were awesome, and I recommend this book to anyone struggling with this work for yourself vs. others debate.
While Bill Gates started a revolution from his dorm room, it’s important to remember that he is 1 in a zillion.
Nicole
I’d take the extra $15,000 as long as the job didn’t suck out my soul. I WAS the freelance writer who worked from the exotic location of my couch, and while it was cool to say, “I’m my own boss!”, I learned that I like being in an office environment around other people and that all the bad that comes along with being corporate didn’t outweigh the good (benefits, regular paycheck, etc…). Glad I took the risk, but even happier that I’m back where, in my eyes, I belong!
Hey Leah! I haven’t seen you in a while!
I think there is a huge generational misconception here- just because the job pays more doesn’t mean it is going to suck your soul. For some reason we’ve been conditioned to associate money with “I will for sure hate that job.” I think there are plenty of fulfilling jobs that pay you. It seems like we are all so busy knocking the well paying jobs that we fail to see the good in them (or see them at all).
I think it is so cool that you’ve been a freelancer and learned that it wasn’t for you. If you wouldn’t have taken that risk, you’d always wonder. I think the focus should be more on finding out what works for you, not necesarily being independent.
None of these bloggers ever mention the realities of entrepreneurship: clients who don’t pay on time (or sometimes at all), cash flow problems, having no life because you are working so much, having your family and friends think you are nuts bc you work so much, employees who steal from you, clients who decide they don’t like your work and shouldn’t have to pay, etc. etc.
Again, I live on both sides of this coin which is why I feel like there are is a lot of fluff going on in the blogosphere!
N
Just came across your blog today and you’re speaking my language! I just recently wrote this post: http://www.thequarterlifequest.com/find-your-passion-get-drunk/ ’cause I was so sick of the generic “Ten Tips to Find Happiness” blog posts
While I am one of those people who quit her 9-5 corporate job to pursue my own interests (note how I didn’t use the word “passion”) and that included self-employment, I am definitely in agreement that people can be happy and satisfied in the corporate world. What I’m not a fan of are the people who get up every morning, miserable, and dreading going to their jobs – it’s just not worth it!
So, yes – I think “passion” is maybe a bit overused – but heck, I’ve been known to use it myself.
And I’m with Rich on the 2nd question – that’s a hard one to generalize on. I know how I view success because I know what sits right with me – but that may very well be different for someone else my age.
And for myself, I would take the pay cut – but only because I’m in a situation where I can. Plus, I’m the type of person that needs their work to mean something to them, otherwise I just don’t give a s**t about doing a good job. However, I would never ever hold it against someone who chose the money instead – I can certainly see the merits there as well.
I hear you on reading a lot of the same content … although, my Google Reader has been carefully selected and is pretty diverse so I don’t really stumble across those redundant posts (because I too, get frustrated and have little patience for the ‘blah’ out there).
It’s ironic that Gen Y writes about many of the same topics, but that means that as a generation, we’re similar which is a pretty obvious assertion. I really enjoy that you say we all have our own version of success. I wrote a post about success (http://smallhandsbigideas.com/career/measuring-success/) saying the exact same thing and it can be objective so I finally generally said “Success is the completion of anything intended.”
Also, in case you missed it or don’t read Jenny’s blog she writes a fun post about why she loves her cubicle: (http://www.lifeaftercollege.org/blog/2010/01/10/i-love-my-cubicle/) a great break free from not being “location independent” or an “entrepreneur.” Jenny always breaks free with diverse topics, personal life and dating.
I also enjoy: http://livethecharmedlife.com, http://www.solitarypanda.com/, http://www.creativeclass.com/creative_class/ and http://www.gwenbell.com/blog/ are some interesting, diverse reads.
In general, I think we all love to give advice. We create expertise and dice out opinions left and right. We will always disagree and maybe find content that doesn’t excite us, so I just unsubscribe and keep my eye out in the blogosphere for fresh content that resonates with me. Because, to each their own right? Maybe someone would find interest in a post about passion or quitting your job and traveling…just depends on who you are and where you are in your life.
Great post – all thought provoking
You’re right on a lot of points. Taking the money is not a bad thing if it makes you happy. But money wouldn’t be enough to sustain me. However, I respect peoples’s right to make their choices.
I’m glad more people are realizing this. Not looking to self-promote, but I think the best way to show my agreement is to refer you to previous writings of mine.
http://www.owlsparks.com/work/chat-with-tyler-hurst/
http://www.owlsparks.com/decisions/the-consequences-of-imprecision/
http://www.owlsparks.com/advice/overdreaming/
Keep it up, Nicole.
Wow Great Topic – thanks for taking it on!
Finding what you love or enjoy takes introspection. It does not come so easily as many of the “quick fix” blog articles you listed seem to suggest.
I think that it helps to take a “time out” to get to know and understand yourself. How one shapes or changes one’s life is dependent on one’s values and needs and made even more complicated by the life situation we find ourselves in.
There is no right way for success. No rules. The good thing is we get to make the rules for ourselves by our thoughtful actions.
I love reading rant posts! I appreciate your honesty. I haven’t noticed this, but I do agree with all your points. I get sick of the “lists” everything is “10 things you should do when ____” or “5 ways to ____”. Gives me anxiety.
You’re an inspiration to many of my rants. haha!
Looking forward to getting our dance moves on at Michael’s wedding next week!
I like this post. Typically, blogs that write on such cliche topics get purged from my reader rather quickly. It wasn’t until I did an unpaid internship at an internet start-up (you know, the kind of company that is supposed to be the poster-child for “fun”) that I realized 99% of start-ups and the people working for them are probably kind of miserable. It’s just that you only hear about the other 1%. Big Fortune 500 companies can be awesome to work for – I’ve worked for one of them. And tiny start-ups can be just as boring as the corporate stereotype suggests.
P.S. I promise you will never any of those topics on my blog.
Here, fucking here! I swear to god, it’s like a weird amalgamation of people’s posting about how they are totally following their passion by being “location independent” and telling other people to follow their passion mixed in with some helpful tips by ProBlogger about how you have to sell E-books and and making lists in order to get traffic. It’s driving me insane. And I just want to scream and ask “Okay, great – boys are silly and you have animals for bosses in start-ups with passion. How are you paying your health insurance? What does your family think of this? What’s your credit score look like? Your student loans?”
I have been trying to start addressing this stuff in my blog, but got a little sidetracked with some personal issues. But, seriously – thanks for the rant.
Your post has a lot of passion!
Wanted to chime in and say that I agree that “passion” has been overused in connection to career choice. As an old Gen X fogey
teaching career exploration classes to mostly Gen Yers, your post made me look back to see if I said anything like, “Make sure you pursue a career that you’re passionate about” this past quarter. I don’t think that I did, not that there’s anything really wrong with such a statement.
I did spend time emphasizing that you don’t have to try to make a career out of something that you are indeed passionate about, because sometimes that doesn’t work out. Instead, you can pursue and engage such passions avocationally, especially if you take on a job that you are less passionate about but pays a lot more.
where do you teach career exploration classes? I really wish they did more of these in college and high school! I’d love to chat with you about this. I know you’ve stopped by here before but we didn’t get to chat much!
At a medium-sized college in the S.F. Bay Area. We have 3 classes each quarter that have been filling up more and more these past few years. I also wish that there was some kind of a solid career education component for high school students. The trick, actually at any student level, is to make career education compelling enough to get as many students as possible to at least become aware of, or even take action on, the importance of early career exploration and development, like being smart with your online image. Just send me a message, and I’ll be happy to chat more.
This is a great post. I wrote this post in January about finding motivation to work in any circumstance-
http://waxingphilosophical2.blogspot.com/2010/01/on-worklife-motivation.html
Our generation wants to make big changes and wants to be fulfilled always, but sometimes the best thing you can do each morning is to sit in your cube, be thankful that you are working somewhere, and practice good ethics with your co-workers, supervisors and customers/vendors/board members. We may have to do things we hate, but it’s out of the things we hate that we learn what real solutions are. The only way established jobs(corporate, gov’t, nonprofit), anything where we have a boss and a structure will continue to serve others is if we first start being servants ourselves, then work up to servant leadership. In time, there is fulfillment and passion
Maybe the word “passion” is over used but I have to say passion is good to have for the work you do. If you combine passion and work you really will have a happy work life I have to say. With that being said, maybe passion is not always the secret formula, maybe it’s just loving what you do. Maybe your passionate about something else in your life, but yet you just love your job. I would hate to wake up every morning and go into a job that I don’t enjoy and I have been there and done that and I will never do it again, no matter for what amount of money. Like Warren Buffet says, your line of work “has to turn you on” yes those are his exact words, because as he says when your work “turns you on” than you are willing to go the extra mile and enjoy it and that leads to great things I believe.
You said that not everyone wants to break out of the 9-5 corporate job, and you are absolutely right. Working for yourself is not for everyone, it’s harder than sitting there in a cubicle, there are so many more sacrifices to be made and risks to take when you go into business for yourself. Some might not want that headache. Even though you pointed out that people speak badly about the corporate world, I think there are some people who also speak badly about people breaking out on their own. I have a friend who thinks the corporate world is the way to go 100%, she does not mind that world, I am the complete opposite. But her flaw is that she does not believe and does not have the guts to risk everything to break out on her own, so she somewhat dismisses my ideas, acting as if her corporate way to making more money is the only and the best idea. I think she’s wrong even though I back her up on her belief, because let’s face it, everyone should have their own success story and one way is not meant for everyone.
I have to say that most of the time, although I complain, I do enjoy my job. If I hated it, I’d move on. But I really don’t think that your job should define you. I think it’s perfectly fine to have a job that you tolerate as long as you do things after work and on the weekends that you love. Not everyone can have a job that they are passionate about. There just aren’t enough jobs like that. Plus some of us don’t have the option of taking a pay cut. So. Yeah. I’d take the raise and keep my job rather than take the pay cut. My job doesn’t define me, I do.
Kari,
I’m in your same boat. I agree with all of your points. Thanks for your comment!
Nicole
I agree with you… that’s why I keep it real 100% of the time. I at least try. When I said the word “passion” when I read this… nothing came to mind” not a good thing. As Kari said, you define yourself, not your job, not who you’re with, not what you do.
Hi Nicole – First, lets talk about passion.
Just kidding.
You might like my blogs: http://www.peaceandprojects.com and http://www.amazingwork.net
The second is about doing amazing work – which could mean in a corporate world or not.
Check them out and please do subscribe to my feeds.
I enjoyed reading this post, so thanks.
Passion is ridiculously overused. To the point that people don’t even understand the true meaning of the word. I would rather have a job that paid me $15,000 more (that I liked!), then to make $10,000 less to do something I’m PASSIONATE about. I don’t even know if there is anything I’m even PASSIONATE about that I would want to do as a job!
THANK YOU!!!!
That is all
I just posted a similar rant a week or so ago about entrepreneurial blogs making it seem like quitting was the only path to happiness in your job. Loved this post – and I completely agree!
http://paintandsoul.blogspot.com/2010/03/rant-entrepreneurship-meaning-is-not.html
I’m an Xer, but I LOVE this post. And I’m a full-time fiction writer who has my first book coming out in two months. So, yeah, I have followed my passion, but it’s a choice. And I sacrifice for that choice – security, company paid benefits, co-workers to chat with at lunch, an actual end to my work day. I am so lucky and so thankful, but just because I’m working my dream job doesn’t mean it isn’t work – in fact, it’s more work, because I care so much more about this than I ever did about previous jobs – my entire personhood is tied to this job. I can certainly understand the choice to work in a corporate setting, or in a job that’s just a job. Sometimes, I really miss being able to leave work at the end of the day.
I had a friend get mad at me last week when I couldn’t agree to a last minute lunch date because I was working. But I feel like if I were at an office, working on a big corporate project, or preparing to take the bar exam people would naturally understand when I’m too busy to go out to lunch. It’s hard to combat that whole – she’s a writer, she doesn’t really work – idea. And I have friends who are artists in various fields and deal with similar issues. I think this whole PERSUE YOUR PASSION!!! thing, along with being condescending to people who have made a conscious choice to work in offices and corporations, also demeans the people who don’t. My work is real work too. And I work HARD.
Plus, there’s nothing wrong with pursuing passions on the side. I don’t believe that my choosing to write full time makes me any more or less of a writer than someone who writes on weekend or early mornings before they go to work. But I also don’t feel the need to compare and contrast my life to other people’s to feel okay about myself. Finding a work/life balance is a hard thing to do, and I think that balance should be celebrated. Everyone has the right to make choices in their lives and it’s silly to point fingers and decide what the right way for another person to live or work is.
Good for you for saying something about this!