Wednesday, December 07, 2011

Guest Post: Passion Vs. Job


Passion vs. Job: The Former Can Make You Happier 

I envy people who have discovered their passion at such a young age. I salute those who have discovered theirs and worked on them though they’re not in school anymore. I belong to neither groups, but if you’d create a Venn Diagram out of this, I’d be in the overlapping area of the two circles.

I mean, I have discovered my passion, but… (a) I’m old enough for a second course, (b) my job is not in line with my desires and (c) I’m too chicken to work on it. Yes, my alibi-for-not-chasing-my-dream list is as long as I want it to be. I want to become a freelance writer who wants to be read, but it seems too late now. And, okay, don’t laugh, I want to be a popular blogger who earns decent money online. What else? I want to be a WAHM, a work at home mom. I don’t know, but these are my desires.

But, I am an engineer by profession. Maybe I was too uninterested in my life while choosing my course back then. However, what I am doing now in my current work will be something that my college self would love. I don’t know what happened. All of a sudden, I lost my penchant in a lot of things, including my job. In my past blog posts, I have talked of nothing but melancholy, quarter-life crisis symptoms and pep talks for myself.

Work eats up more than a third of your day every weekday and weekends, if you decide to work overtime. Now, that portion is big enough to be an influencer of your daily mood, and in the long run, attitude towards your life. Right? I like my job, but I don’t love love it so much. I’m thinking it would have been fab if my work jived with my desired lifestyle. That way, it’ll just be like partying everyday.

Allow me to suggest some tips on how to eliminate this passion-job conundrum.

Work on your interest, how unique or weird it might be. Those new, modern courses like clothing technology and dog psychology might skyrocket you to fame and fortune. Gone are the days when you get laughed at for wanting to become a painter or a singer. With the eclectic taste of today’s modern people along with technology and social media, you might just turn into the next superstar in a couple of minutes.

Chase your dreams. Drop out of college if you have another brilliant idea in mind. Sorry if you are a parent who got offended by my idea. I finished college. I am just trying to point out something in here. I am talking about Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple. Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook. Steven Spielberg, movie director and producer. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft. Ralph Lauren, creator of Polo Ralph Lauren. Michael Dell, founder and CEO of DELL. Henry Ford, owner of Ford Motor Company. Rachel Ray, celebrated cook. These amazing people have that passion inside them that they just couldn’t fight against. They need to do something drastic to make their vision become a tangible and rocking thing. They’ve dropped out of school to chase their dreams. And they succeeded.

Turn down a job that you think you wouldn’t enjoy doing. Even if it pays much. Pursuing your dreams takes guts. What happens when you put off your dream and give in to that day job instead? You’ll start to get comfortable with it. You wouldn’t notice that it’s been a year since you’ve stayed on that desk waiting for the clock to strike 4 o’clock everyday so that you can go home and breathe. Before you know it, you’re literally running after your dream -- the distance between you and your dream have augmented over the years.

These are just some tips that I have made up because I do have that passion vs. day job dilemma. I’m glad I’m done with Step One – Figuring what my passion is. Don’t worry, I am on my way to the next level. I am trying to keep a second job that’s in line with my heart’s desire.

How about you? Do you keep your day job just so you can pay the bills?



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“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle." [Stanford commencement speech, 2005]”. - Steve Jobs



About the Blogger.

Miss `C believes that she is a writer in her own little world, but she keeps a day job as an engineer because she has some bills to pay. The dame feels that November kissed her eyes open and now, she’s living the good life. On her current like lists are talking to people for the first time, trying out something new, engaging in girl talks once again, pigging out at Midnight Mercato, kisses on the forehead and brand new contemporary books.

And she just whispered she’d like to meet you. Come have tea with her at her place {blog} Of Scmoozes, mutts and love. And oh, she likes tweets: @aizanity (http://twitter.com/aizanity)


21 comments:

  1. ouch. what a dilemma...i like this guest post..made me appreciate more that im chasing all my dreams while im still this young...

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  2. I really like your post because it quite reflects my dilemma. I do sometimes feel like I am a little bit "empty". Why does everyone has a passion besides me? lol
    Still working on that. My current strategy is to try everything as possible, from sports, cooking, to culture... everything.

    Feeling less empty now. After having a glass of wine! ah!

    X rita

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  3. You should work on your interests, but there are people who think that you should keep your passion and work separate as you lose your passion for it when it becomes work.

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  4. Great points to ponder Miss 'C. I always believe that work should give you fulfillment. That's the driving force to work... As for passion, you should always have it whether it's innate in your job or not.

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  5. yes!! c Ms Aizanity aka Ms C, enginner ka pala, profession ng isang guy, i salute you for that.. hehe!

    Oo! i keep my job so i can pay my bills... haha! dream ko talaga since bata ako maging doctor, :p pero dahil matalino ako haha! joke, dahil bobo ako hnd kinaya ng powers ko un, kaya ito, akoy isang mabuting librarian na hehe! pero im super inlove na dto sa trabaho ko..

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  6. Thanks for your tips!:) Very helpful!:)

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  7. I love my job! I'm self employed and I've been working for more or less 18 years na. Ayan nabuking tuloy na ang tanda na! hahaha! Ako namn mahal ko ang trabaho ko at ito talaga yung gusto ko pero may time na tinatamad ako mag work. Dahil hawak ko yung oras ko pwede akong di mag work kung gusto ko. What I do is take a break and travel o lamyerda kung saan man. It's not to late for you to do what you want to do and achieve what you want to achieve. Kung ano man yung passion mo just go for it!

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  8. nakakarelate ako nito ngayon ah... as in ngayon talaga...

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  10. Don't drop out of college. Unless, of course, you're a prodigy with very extra ordinary talent, like say Michael Jackson.

    Drop out or not, follow your dream and achieve greatness by applying what you're good at, double time.

    Don't settle until you find the perfect job

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  11. Sometimes I have the passion, but most often, I am just doing things in my job because I need to. I hope I can find the job that suits me..
    Nice post. ^_^

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  12. Bravo for this post. Even if it's about money to support your family or yourself.It is a nightmare to report for work you don't like.Even worst if you are not doing anything about it lingering too long killing yourself.Life is too precious to waste.

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  13. nice post!... been following you now....

    i'm a new blogger and just recently got married.... i am now a housewife and its a dream come true! lol i am so busy thinking what to do next. i worked as a product specialist and its a very stressful job.... i need time to get use to my new life now. wlang magawa.

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  14. Good points Ma'am Engr. Siguro medyo practical na lang ang mga tao ngayon at takot na mag-take risk. Sa pagpili pa lang ng course, it's hard to choose a course according to what you love to do. Lalo na kung walang kasiguraduhan sa pipiliin mo. Kaya karamihan, mag-play safe at kakalimutan ang pangarap para lang masiguro ang future nila. I don't know if I'm right. Kung mali, eh di joke. Hahaha.

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  15. the dilemma is that people really have a hard time finding what they love and finding the right job. Its always a mismatch.

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  16. I so can relate. This is one of the factors why I resigned from work recently.

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  17. I knew it.. I knew she can pull this topic through with flying colors. I remembered ms. leah, I suggested this topic and the best blogger to write it. Am I right?

    I love this post, not only because I love the writer, but because I can totally relate to it. I finally let go of my day job and followed my dreams. I may not be the best freelance writer now, and I might never be, but it's what I love to do and I will continue doing it. I still need to learn a lot in terms of writing and I am taking one step at a time. When I turned down my day job, I also get to do what I love most "crafts" and I'm starting to earn money from that as well. I'm so keen to work from home because it is my dream to be a work-from-home mom and wife.

    No wonder Ms. C and I really hit off. We are so similar.

    Nice one sis..

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  18. I am glad I stumbled upon this post. It makes me feel more desired to chase my dreams while I am still in college. It makes me feel glad that I have really spent time to think about the course I would take. I hope my passions right now will not change in the future, or else I will be in the same dilemma as Ms. C.

    By the way, I am praying for all the people who is in the same dilemma that they may be again happy with their passions.

    Believe. God is here to help us. :)

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  19. I was touched! :)

    I dropped out college just this sem and started working online. In some ways, my both parents are against my decision about dropping out in school but still, in the end, they support me of what I love to do.

    I dunno. I don't write that good just like the guest blogger (Miss `C) but I love to write random stuffs and I love HTML codes! :)

    A very inspiring post! :)

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  20. Truly inspirational, Ms C! I love how your words flowed from your heart to your post.

    You've included some alibis for not chasing your dreams. But, in effect, you are already living your dream as a writer because these words of yours haven't been kept for your eyes only, but have been beautifully shared to the online public.

    Even though you haven't earned payment for writing online, and are still holding on to your day job to help pay your bills, you've already made one huge step towards embracing what you are truly passionate about. :)

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  21. i can also relate to this post! i'm keeping my job now to pay some bills and to complete the required 15 years to qualify for the early retirement package. 15 more months and i am done, looking forward to it! :)

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