If you follow your heart, does the money follow?
I love this question. I love it because it’s such a polarizing one. There has not been one article I have yet to come across on the old WWW that has definitively answer the question: should you follow your passion or go for the money? For some, money isn’t a huge consideration so the answer might appear to be clear. I would argue that this is not on the money (sorry, I had to go for the pun) at all. Why? Because holding down a job, let alone developing a career, is becoming an increasingly difficult undertaking in the 21st century. There are jobs today that many could not have envisioned being in existence and many jobs that either no longer exist, or are endangered species. This has all to do with the rise of technology in the workplace and our increasingly globalized world. So even if money is not a big consideration, one can find themselves completely out a job depending on their occupation or industry. We definitely live in interesting times when navigating our careers.
At the same time, who wants to be stuck in a job they despise regardless of the pay? Sure, people are willing to do that. Ultimately though, it isn’t something people wish for but rather something they settle for.
So sure, if you are passionate about a recession proof, technology proof line of work – let’s say database administration or nursing – you can skip this article altogether. The majority of readers however fall somewhere between passion and money, between a recession/technology proof job and an endangered one. So all those people in that Titanic sized zone, I present a middle ground: follow your passion while trending towards the future. What does that mean? Well it means that you are doing an activity for financial compensation that you enjoy in a way that takes into account the accelerating pace of technology advancement that is changing how our jobs look like.
It’s apparent that digitization of work is here to stay. Let’s take a journalist as an example of an endangered career choice. This is a field that is going extinct like the dodo bird. With the rise of independent journalism and in the age of the internet where there is no end of news sources, jobs in journalism are drying up quickly. If I were coaching someone with this background, I would give them the following advice:
1. Be curious and try new things
You never know where a hidden passion may lie. The great thing about a lifetime is that there is so much opportunity to discover yourself and what makes you happy and fulfilled. If you asked me 10 years ago if I would ever participate in Tough Mudder, I’d likely have said no chance in hell. I know for a fact when it came to moving to Colombia to learn Spanish back in 2013 that I would have never considered the move even a year prior. So don’t underestimate the number of passions you have yet to unlock and awaken. Research what type of jobs are on the rise. Read up and watch youtube videos on different industries and types of work. Connect with people on LinkedIn that are outside your line of work to learn more. Every day is a great opportunity to discover more about yourself.
2. Make your passion more relevant
In our example of the journalist, investigation and writing are two foundational skills of the job. Well if these skills can be repositioned towards growing fields such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, video game design or virtual reality, there is a good chance people with these skills will find themselves in higher demand. A journalist could choose to become an authority in their field on one of these areas as a starting point. Shifting writing skills to technical writing for IT projects and firms would also allow someone with this background to ride the tech wave.
3. Re-certify with your passion in mind
This is an extension of making your passion more relevant. In many cases, you will need more education and certification to crack a new field. If an artist wants to get into video game design, they likely need to get new training. If you don’t have the luxury of attending a program full time, consider night courses or at a minimum a MOOC.
4. Make your passion a side project
This can be a very viable option, especially for those who work jobs that they have little passion for and are doing it to maintain their lifestyle. An auditor could make their love of pottery their focus outside of work – and even generate a side income from that! For some, their passion could eventually supplant their day job with a bit of business savvy and tenacity. In the meantime, their day job serves a very important purpose.
5. Be patient
Nothing good comes quickly. It takes time to build something great. Make steady progress towards finding that sweet spot between your passion and a viable career. Also, please be gentle on yourself along the way. It’s not always a straight line nor a smooth ride.
I feel very fortunate that I have found a job with growth potential that combines a couple of my passions. I love working with data as well as with people. I enjoy giving presentations, learning and teaching. All these elements fill my time at work. I had to reposition myself on several occasions throughout my career to get here. And I did this by adhering to the five points I listed above.
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