Essay

Young people are often told to be 'realistic' about their careers, as if enthusiasm were a luxury. Yet those who choose work they genuinely care about tend to persist through setbacks, keep learning long after formal training ends and bring an energy to their work that employers notice. A career lasts forty years or more; spending it in a job chosen solely for security or salary is a recipe for quiet misery. Passion is no guarantee of success, but it is the most reliable fuel for the sustained effort that success requires.

The advice to 'follow your passion' assumes that most of us already have one, waiting to be discovered. In reality, few school-leavers have a clear sense of what they love, and many are left anxious that they have somehow missed their calling. Interest frequently develops the other way round: people become passionate about work once they are good at it and see that it matters to others. The advice also overlooks economics. Some fields attract far more hopeful entrants than there are jobs, and for those without family money to fall back on, the cost of chasing a dream can be high.