Strive

2Are You Passionate Enough?

It ain't just about you and your damn passion.

—Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs's biographer, from a discussion panel on jobs

We are often told that if we pursue what we love then success will follow. That is wrong.

It is an unfortunate fact of the modern educational system that we are constantly encouraged to follow our passions because they will eventually make us “great.” Children who lead their soccer, football, or basketball teams to victory find themselves inundated with encouragement to pursue professional sports in the hopes of showing the world their “greatness.” Others excel in math or writing; they will, of course, be told that they could be the next René Descartes or Emily Dickinson. There's nothing wrong with encouraging passion. After all, people who have not explored any of their talents are cheating themselves, and potentially many others. However, the problem arises when following your passion becomes directly linked at a young age to over‐the‐top outcomes without highlighting the long, dusty road the most successful have trudged. The most successful may have followed their passion, but they also faced challenges head‐on and took uncomfortable steps to make gains. Think of the 10‐sentence paragraph you probably read about George Washington becoming the first American president: It most likely failed to mention that Washington took a pounding at Fort Necessity in 1754 and had his character slandered with the false accusation of an assassination. ...