Why "Do What You Love" Is Bad Career Advice

Have you ever noticed how the internet is crowded with career advice so abysmal that it barely qualifies as advice at all? It's like a bizarre game of telephone where the original message was mangled into something utterly unrecognizable. These days, it seems every other "career coach" or self-proclaimed job search "guru" is peddling the same tired tropes. You've seen them: the endless parade of resume-editing services promising to land you your dream job or those pastel-coloured journals emblazoned with the words "Do what you love" in a flowy script as if scribbling your passions on paper could magically pay the rent. It's all so neat, so tidy, and so utterly wrong.

"Do what you love" sounds like something you'd read in a fortune cookie or see plastered across an Instagram post with a sunset backdrop. But where did this idea even come from? Historically, the phrase gained traction in the latter half of the 20th century, coinciding with a cultural shift that emphasized self-fulfillment over practicality. In a 2005 Stanford commencement speech, Steve Jobs famously advised, "The only way to do great work is to love what you do." And just like that, a generation of people were given permission—no, encouraged—to throw caution to the wind and chase their passions with reckless abandon. But here's the kicker: for every Steve Jobs, countless others followed this advice straight into a brick wall because the reality is that not every passion can pay the bills.

In a capitalist system, where the need to make a living is inescapable, the phrase "do what you love" feels less like inspiration and more like a passive-aggressive taunt. We all have to work to survive, and if pursuing our passions was as simple as just deciding to do what we love, wouldn't we all be doing it? The truth is that many of us don't have the luxury of letting passion dictate our career paths. It's not about choosing between what you love and what pays the bills—it's about navigating a landscape where those two things rarely overlap. And when they don't, the advice to "do what you love" isn't just unhelpful; it's downright insulting.

Society loves to romanticize work, often using tropes like "do what you love" to sell us on something we all have to do, much like when leaders refer to teams as families or make grandiose statements about a purpose-based mission while really just aiming to make as much money as possible. These narratives encourage us to follow our hearts and chase passion, as if pragmatism and security are somehow lesser pursuits. But our primal instincts, honed by generations of survival, tell us to seek security and ensure our basic needs are met before pursuing higher aspirations. There’s nothing wrong with doing a job that you can tolerate, one that enables you to live a life that you love. Chasing dreams is important, but it’s dangerous to do so without fully acknowledging the reality of the world we live in.

Let's face it: "Do what you love" is undeniably lousy career advice. It implies that passion is the only ingredient necessary for a fulfilling career, ignoring the harsh reality that success often requires a complex cocktail of skills, opportunity, and—let's not forget—privilege. Passion alone doesn't pay the rent, provide health insurance, or guarantee job security. It's a seductive notion, but it also sets people up for failure by suggesting that if you're not doing what you love, you're somehow doing life wrong. The truth is that careers are messy, often dictated by external factors far beyond our control, and passion alone is rarely enough to sustain them.

Instead of chasing an elusive dream of doing what you love, how about focusing on "do what empowers you to build a life you love"? This is about being strategic, about crafting a life that feels right for you, even if it doesn't fit neatly into the "do what you love and follow your passion” narrative.

Start by asking yourself these questions: What do I value most in life? What kind of work environment energizes me? How much risk am I willing to take? What skills do I possess that are both marketable and fulfilling? How can I balance my career aspirations with the practicalities of living? Acknowledge that Maslow's hierarchy of needs exists for a reason: without security and stability, chasing passion alone can lead to burnout and disappointment.

So, here's the bottom line: The next time you're tempted to latch onto the idea of doing what you love, pause and reconsider. Life isn't about fitting into a pre-packaged piece of career advice; it's about defining success on your own terms. Ask yourself what kind of life you want to build—not just what job you want to do—and let that be your guiding star. Because, in the end, it's not about doing what you love; it's about loving the life you create.

Anyway, that is all for now. If you made it this far. Thank you!

- Avery