Since ancient civilizations, people have sought meaning in life, including in their work. A study by PwC shows that 83% of employees want their day-to-day work to be meaningful. Another study reveals that only 5% of workers feel their current job is the most meaningful work they could be doing.
Personally, I find the relationship between work and passion intriguing. This curiosity has led me to reflect on the possible ways passion and work intersect.
The purpose of this writing is to offer (hopefully) a new perspective for you to consider when contemplating your career, current job, or even life in general.
1. Finding Work That Aligns with Your Passion
This is arguably the most ideal scenario—when your job aligns perfectly with your passion, work feels effortless, and you’re willing to go beyond your responsibilities without feeling burdened.
I’m fortunate to have experienced this in one of my jobs (not telling which one, hahaha). I once had a role that matched my passion 100%, including how my boss treated me, and it felt like heaven.
However, this is a luxury that’s extremely rare. Out of the dozens of jobs I’ve had across different companies, I only experienced it once. Many people never get a job that aligns 100% with their passion and ideals. According to a study by Deloitte’s Center for the Edge, only 13% of the U.S. workforce is passionate about their jobs, while 68% remain disengaged. I would argue that these numbers are likely similar in many other countries.
So, even though this is the ideal scenario, you can’t expect it to happen easily—or at all. Most people feel work sucks for various reasons: a toxic boss, overwhelming workload, difficult colleagues, inadequate pay, or a combination of all these factors.
But if you’re one of the lucky few whose job aligns with your passion, work hard to keep it and don’t let it go. It might not last forever, and if you let it slip away, you may never get another chance like it again.
2. Separating Work and Passion
The second approach is to detach passion from work and keep them in separate boxes. Since finding a job that aligns with your passion is rare, it might be easier to accept that work is just a means to survive—something necessary but not necessarily fulfilling.
However, I strongly believe that passion and hobbies make life more enjoyable. Simply abandoning them isn’t an option.
Unfortunately, even achieving this balance isn’t always easy. First, many companies still don’t offer flexible working arrangements, even in 2025. Some employers distrust remote work and enforce strict office policies. A rigid work schedule can make it difficult to find time and energy for passion projects.
Additionally, personal responsibilities—such as being a parent or caregiver—can further limit the time available for hobbies.
Interestingly, research from the World Happiness Report 2024 highlights six key factors influencing happiness:
- GDP per capita – Economic prosperity matters.
- Social support – Having at least one person to rely on boosts happiness.
- Healthy life expectancy – Physical and mental well-being are crucial.
- Freedom to make life choices – Autonomy contributes to fulfillment.
- Generosity – Charitable behavior fosters community happiness.
- Perception of corruption – Trust in government and business influences satisfaction.
Many of the happiest nations prioritize work-life balance, offering flexible working hours and generous parental leave. Unfortunately, despite global awareness of this concept, many companies still fail to implement it—or simply don’t care about employee happiness.
3. Working Hard to ‘Retire’ Early and Pursue Passion Later
A third approach is to work like crazy for years, save aggressively, and retire early to pursue passion projects.
For example, some people sacrifice their 20s and 30s working in high-paying corporate jobs, playing office politics, or taking on multiple jobs. They save aggressively and live frugally so they can quit the rat race in their 40s to start a YouTube channel, open a small shop, or follow their dream project.
However, this option isn’t feasible for everyone. To accumulate significant savings, you need a high-paying job or multiple jobs with salaries exceeding your living costs. This is tricky because getting a high-paying job isn’t easy, especially if you don’t come from a wealthy background with strong industry connections.
From my personal experience, out of the 10 jobs I’ve had, only two provided a salary substantial enough for serious savings. I acknowledge my relative privilege—being born into a low-middle-income family—but I never played office politics and spent 90% of my career in the gaming industry, which isn’t among the most lucrative fields.
Additionally, research from Pew Research and Zippia Research suggests that changing jobs periodically leads to better salary growth than staying loyal to one company for too long.
Thus, while this third option is possible, it’s far from easy or accessible to everyone.
4. Adapting or Forcing Passion into Your Work
The fourth and easiest option is to train yourself to love your work—even if it wasn’t your initial passion.
Humans are adaptable. Just as we can train our taste buds to enjoy foods we once disliked, we can cultivate interest in new hobbies or fields of work. Learning new things can be fulfilling and exciting.
However, while this is the most achievable option, it’s important to recognize that passion isn’t the only factor that determines job satisfaction.
Let me explain.
Passion can come in two forms:
- Passion for the type of work (journalism, programming, sales, etc.).
- Passion for the industry (gaming, finance, education, etc.).
However, these aren’t the only factors that affect job satisfaction. Company policies, boss behavior, and colleagues’ attitudes often play an even bigger role in how enjoyable or miserable a job is.
Unlike passion, you can’t force yourself to love a toxic boss, unreasonable policies, or a hostile work environment. At best, you can tolerate them—but they will still impact your well-being.
For example, I dislike bosses who yell at employees. Even if I’m not the one being yelled at, the negative atmosphere makes me uncomfortable. Maybe I’m too idealistic or romantic, but I believe in treating people with basic human decency and dignity. In such cases, passion alone wouldn’t be enough to keep me in the job.
Conclusion
In my other writing, Why is Happiness So Elusive, I emphasized how work plays a crucial role in our overall happiness.
On one hand, finding a job that aligns with our passion can be deeply fulfilling and contribute immensely to our well-being. However, as we’ve discussed, achieving this harmony is incredibly difficult for most people. Each of the four approaches we explored has its challenges, but understanding them might help you navigate your career path with more clarity. At the end of the day, there’s no single right answer—only the best choice that fits your circumstances.
