Follow Your Passion is Terrible Advice. Here’s Why.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 พ.ค. 2024
- A super popular piece of career advice is to follow your passion, but actually that's not the best thing you can do to find a career you actually love. In this video, I discuss the lessons from Cal Newport's book So Good They Can't Ignore You about how to build a career you love. Enjoy x
You can get the book here: geni.us/2sRRg or if you want to read a great condensed summary of the book, head over to Shortform - go.aliabdaal.com/shortform
Timestamps
0:00 Intro
0:40 Don't follow your passion
4:24 Develop a craftsmen mindset
12:13 Cash in your career capital for control
16:42 Finding a mission
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Awesome video
I would also recommend reading The will to power If you liked that book @Ali abdaal
I don’t fully agree… It’s hard to become really good at something you hate, because you just want to avoid doing it at all costs rather than put in the time needed to become better. And just because you can’t make money off your biggest passion (like video games or music) doesn’t mean you can’t have other interests that can guide you in your career choice. It’s not like you’re assigned one passion at birth and can’t be interested in multiple things. Like in the Steve Jobs example, he was probably genuinely passionate about his work, even if it wasn’t his first ever passion in life.
@ Grenyuk
Excellent point!
Constructive criticism is imp.
The truth is you don't agree at all .
Ali did point out how one can combine interest & use it to their benefits tho. Career capital & stuff.
And Steve clearly said that, "If you have not found your passion, keep looking". Probably Zen life is not what he much impressed with and turned out to be the innovator and problem solver which he later found as the real passion..
Keep looking.
"Follow your passion" works for some people and doesn't work for others. But the phrase "Be so good, they can't ignore you" is fantastic and universal.
@@eieigo what’s your parents passion
It’s like saying be so rich they can’t unsee you. general advice so universal that everybody can understand nobody know how to do it
You can be good at something but hate it. Heaps of people who are stuck in jobs for 10-20 years plus who aren't passionate about it.
Just be better than the competition bro its simple
@@ponternal yeah. it's simple. that's why everybody that doing it, succeed.
Passion starts the engine, but only discipline can keep it "rolling".
No matter how passionate you are, it is discipline, the only thing that will make you practice when you don't feel like it, or when you "don't have time" for it. That's the whole point of the book; find some things that meet the criteria and practice so much that you can't be ignored.
There is no "discipline," only state of mind.
@@MiketheNerdRanger what do you mean by that? Could you elaborate.
exactly
bassicaly the book is about 10.000 hours thing
For me discipline and passion kind of go together. My passion in the professional world is something that requires discipline, and I’ve always been really good with discipline myself.
I read this book in 2014 and decided to chase money (the "adjacent possible") instead of my dreams. I ended up miserable and chronically stressed for the next 5 years of my life. Those were pivotal years and I'd pay any amount of money to get them back. Follow your passion, people. Just work hard at that instead of whatever seems the path of least resistance. Even if you end up poorer, you'll be happier. Time is your most valuable resource.
Yah.... thanks for sharing your experience 😇
Real talk. Getting no advice is preferable to bad advice.
Exactly... I totally agree with your comment. Realistic advice 👏🏻
Yeah on the other hand there are some people who get paralyzed or too anxious because they don't know their passion yet.
It's not chasing money...its how you chase it
Depends on how you define "passion". I don't think "I'm passionate about playing guitar, but I suck at it" is passion. Same can be said about "Be so good, they can't ignore you", what if passion is the drive to do things until you are THAT good?
Indeed.
From my pov, it is exactly that, the strongest of my internal motivators .
Can u summarize what points r on the video because I don’t feel like watching it lol
Spot on.
@@zuki9425 exactly why you wont be something great in this life
"Love doesn't mean it has to last forever", same applies for passion.
If it will not be last forever then its not true love bitch we called that interest 😎
@@krishnabhardwaj7400 I will rephrase that for you, "True love doesn't mean the relationship has to last forever"
@@imnemo2327 i Got your point dude i m sure your are not belongs to india ! right?
@@imnemo2327 just use love there is nothing called as true love
@@hdheyeyey9817 ok
Somehow Ali breaks down everything with clarity, which is something we all appreciate. Following your passion doesn’t always equate to achieving success. Every one of us is different.
True.
Comment is sus
I love piano and even when I'm not good at it, I still enjoy every second of it and it allows me to practice and get better while enjoying the process.
But when you are not really interested in the subject, even if you are good at it, the process will be very difficult and remorseful for you.
So whether or not to follow your passion is not something others can definitively advise you on, it all depends on you and your personality.
I don't know how to play it too... But i just love the music 🎵🎶
@@dsx9927 so happy to hear that dear one
Agreed!
Gaming content creator here.. gonna have to hard disagree with the beginning of this video. I love video games and love my job making videos! The solution isn’t “don’t follow your passion”, the solution is moderation. So many gaming content creators overwork themselves, get burnt out, then second guess their skills and passion.
Don’t follow your passion is terrible advice
Agree with everything you said
Following passion is bad advice for business that’s pretty much it and agree what you said.
Couldn't agree more with you. Can't agree with this viewpoint/advice, tbh.
That's what he said in the video,for people who are successful in their passion like Jobs,it's easy to say "follow ur passion".....what I wud say is under the "successful creator" layer,there lie rotten layers over layers of unsuccessful people who wud tell "dont follow ur passion without thought"...
Ali with all my respect, just because you want to chase productivity and money over your dream doesn’t mean the rest of us have to
You can still chase both you know, the fact that it's your dream, does not necesarily mean you have to make money out of it, but you have to make money out ot something.
Of course you can be so poor and be passionate on whatever you're doing. as long as you're okay with the broke life you're living then there is no problem. For me, i could only could enjoy life when i could do my passion without having any financial issues
@@adamkamienski7322 I’m okay with that what bothers me is the idea money should be central and our passion should be set aside
@@a_man7818 i mean you can also do something you are not passionate about and still be broke
@@alexandria5420 He’s always been money-fixated so the advice isn’t really surprising!
I disagree with the 'longer you're doing something and the better you become at it you then love it' - I've been doing office work for 30 years and while good at it, I hate it.
Being good at something does not mean you won't hate it, the truth is, you will hate every job you get unless you learn to be at peace with your circumstances. If you build amazing lego figures every day, it's not going to be equally fun every time, but if you can do it anyways without judging the experience, you can do anything and feel happy at the end of the day. It has nothing to do with passion, but passion brings fulfillment.
I’ve had to screenshot your wise comment
I agree,
"I'm really glad I spent my whole life chasing all that money instead of wasting time on all the people and things I really cared about."
Said no one, ever.
This
Many Billionares usually say exactly that though?
@@RaelagDidEverythingRight Really? Who?
@@RaelagDidEverythingRight they're lying to keep their shareholders happy. Sociopaths like that have holes they can never fill.
Lots of people do say that!!
Kinda appreciate how fast Ali talks in his videos. No need to fast forward since he also goes straight to the answers. Thanks man
Ikr it saved me having to double speed the video
@@giordanodsouza9563 why? Do you think that if he was speaking slowly you would be wasting time?
he talks at normal speed actually. most people talk slow to me since they are trying to drag out the videos for the sake of monetization or whatever.
@@newt2120 Nope, he talks faster than most TH-camrs out there. It's all relative, do what works for you.
He talk too fast. I had to slow the video down.
I was skeptical when reading the title of your video, but, Ali, you totally convinced me! Great video!... as always :)
You need passion to push through the difficult fields like medicine. If we focus only on “getting good”, then we tend to focus too much on pursuits with short-term gratification.
You’d be surprised to learn how many people are doctors because for the money, status, or because their family wants them to be.
@@folklore_of_beth Yeah, passion is overrated.
It’s the other way around you can be passionate about anything let’s say doctors but if you don’t have the discipline to keep pushing through the sections you don’t wanna study thats discipline that’s not passion passion is just doing what you like
You can live without passion but you can’t live without discipline
lmao I was about to say but Beth was quicker, as someone who worked in healtcare and managed doctors, the vast MAJORITY of them are in it for status and money, nothing else.
I don't think this is the most sound advice. At least not for everyone. I think too often we take the extremes at times and then sort of run with an idea. There's a point where you don't love something enough, and there's a point to where you love it too much that you can't bother to follow it or see yourself fail in it, so you're more in love with the idea. And sometimes, very often times, I think this advice works better for people who place much more importance on emotional highs that they can't stick to one thing when it becomes 'boring' or hard..
In my mind, the thing I'm passionate about is the thing I keep coming back to like some crazed obsessed madman. Even when it makes me sad, or frustrated, or angry, or discouraged, or happy, or bored. It's a total and complete irrational level of dedication, despite the rollercoaster of emotions and phases.
Like Rescuers in Syria
Well said
Okay that made a lot of sense to me, thank you.
Don’t follow your passion. Follow you effort. Follow where you spend your time because when you’re good at something, you tend to want to get better. -Mark Cuban
makes sense
You are still directing yourself to your passion
so true, effort equals inputs and you can control it, the result is just an output and you can't control it. On top of that input if you're doing so long and stay in the flow(learning) you'll have your passion.
@@AungBaw yessss for me that’s creative writing & studying things related in the field of science
Well, I am finally following my passion for the first time in years, studying my passion and also starting my career through mandatory practice and honestly I’ve never felt happier.
I am starting at University soon, but I am not sure if I should follow my passion…
@@maximilian2782 you only have one life. If you don’t ever try to chase your passion, you’ll be left wondering what could’ve been
@@maximilian2782 like he said. You have one life. Do you want to make the most of it?
Wow,that video really reflected my path to my passion. I always thought to follow my passion but when I consider how got where I am, it's a combination of so many skills I want to develop over time. Besides thank u Ali.
Only passion can't lead to success but passion with hard work and dedication earn success.
Discipline come's always first....
But you know what wisdom is more important than hard work
@@Fred-ur2sr Yea, work Smarter not Harder.
People downplay or ignore the element of luck or chance. So many things depend on it - the family you were born into, the country, the opportunities you were given when grown up, etc. Sometimes hard work, passion and determination only is not enough. People should appreciate the effect of luck or given opportunities more and not take them for granted.
It really depends on who "you" is.
You're right that these pieces of advice are not meant for most people.
There are certain people whom which following their passion *is* the right advice. They're just not the majority. Heck, they're probably less than the square root of the majority.
Usually if you’re good at something you will become passionate about it because people like being good at things.
Good point
To some extent but sometimes if it's too easy you're more likely to get bored of it.
There's a difference between being good and then getting passionate about it, compared to being passionate about something and then becoming good at it because of your passion. Most people are in the first category. Like you said, people like being good at things. I've noticed many people get "trapped" in their success and can't leave because they're too good at it. The second category of people don't get trapped.
@@newsun2838 are you dumb???? yes you can be good at something AND HATE IT!!
I'm good at math for my entire life but not passionate about it🤷
Well said. Love your talk about autonomy. It doesn’t get handed to you and it’s all steps that need to be taken. Be good at whatever first. That should be the focus
Thank you Ali, I'm 18 and currently doubting the very first important decision of my career life...your videos always help me to keep going and try to do my best to develop new skills, even if I don't know where I'm going exactly (guess some of us aren't born with that burning sense of purpose lol). I just feel so reassured every time you talk because you're actually very honest and down to earth. It's a quality I truly appreciate
Me tooo
So many of these things such as becoming so good they cant ignore you, happened to me in my own career, but I never realized or thought about these concepts until now. For sure this is something I want to teach my team.
this is exactly what i need.
I'm in the state of paradox of passion, i have so manny interest but I'm confused what should i try first to be my passion of life definitely will take notes on this Thans Alii !
This guy always comes through with amazing advice
Amazing how after listening daily to all of Ali’s podcasts and watching every TH-cam video I have come to naturally read the next book in the book club 😮😂
You are definitely my VERY favorite youtuber! Thanks so much for all your videos, they are insightful and inspiring.
Thank you for giving people realistic expectations.
Following your passions inevitably leads to skill in those fields. So passion and skill is essentially one and the same. It’s physically impossible to do something everyday, more so something you enjoy or are passionate about, and not become masterly skillful in it.
I feel like that's just the fundamental difference between people who are passion-oriented and people who are success-oriented.
For someone who is really passionate about one or multiple things, happiness will come from doing the thing every day and skill will emerge from that happiness. For someone who only wants success in society, happiness will emerge solely from mastering that skill and being (close to) the best.
I'm not saying that one personality is better than the other, it's just that everyone is driven by different needs.
@@olderon66 I think you nailed it. Two totally different mindsets. One focused on external validation (success) and the other being focused on internal validation (fulfillment). Goal vs journey.
Thank you! This really helped me at this moment. It gave me an realistic view again. You don't just get there. You really need to work for it. 😁Let's just say I really needed to hear this!
Such sage advice. Thanks so much. I think students who have not started careers yet should definitely watch this video.
It's amazing how i was trying to explain this to my friends. I am going to use your thoughts to convice them more
Hi Ali apart from the fact that you make great educative content. Am also glad and happy to see you taking you health and fitness serious 👌🏽 you’re looking so great, I mean your whole physique 😮💜💜✌🏽
This is extremely insightful, thanks so much for this video!
OMG, Ali, this video is all what I need right now. I'm struggling to apply the PhD right now. It's really hard and sometimes I just want to quit and make music for living, which is my passion, but this video rescues me from this wrong direction. I will keep going and thank you for making thei great content.
phds are handed out like candy today. totally worthless.
NO, this is NOT what you need - see my comment above!
I feel you! Doing medical board exams and sometimes you just want to quit! I have many passions but am sticking to what I started, something that I have to ground me while still enjoying passions and making it an income in future too.
@@defaultworkouts So you have one then?
I love that book read it in 2018, after watching this video am going to read it again. Great video and book choice too
Basically, follow your passion but don't follow impulsive short-lived interests. We mistake slight interests and "kinda-wants" as passions, but genuine passion would be the fuel for discipline. You can be good at something but hate doing it, and you won't be able to conjure up consistent discipline for developing the skill, which is why passion is important.
The only person that I don't get bored to watch for 18mins.🥰 Great Book, Great Review Ali❤
Best advice ever 🎉I wish I knew this 15 years ago - but I guess in many ways it’s never too late to seize the day 🙏🏾
Really great vid and extremely insightful, thoroughly appreciate this
Love it! Found copies in the Library. Added to my list of reservations. Thank You Ali! 😊
Great video…just when I needed it
Thank you Ali
You have no idea how much I needed this video!! Thank you so much!
The value of this advice, especially in this easily digestible format, is invaluable. Thank you!!!
Best youtuber ever . Keep up the good work!
Thanks for your book review, it is very insightful 👍
Thank you Ali for being realistic also for the people OUT of first world countries! :) It is so refreshing to find relatable and quality content.
So many new things in this video. Great Scott!
Thank you so much for this video! It certainly helped me self reflect.
I'm so glad 😊
Love you Ali. Thank you for everything. 💜❤
The reason why I agree with this advice is because till now, nothing has been fully passionate to me. The same thing which I love doing, I would really hate it somedays.
My hobby since I was 9, is now my job and I am loving every minute of it
Thank you so much for this video Ali, I loved your advice about realistic expectation for time devoted to work. As somebody in their mid-20s, it has been eye opening to see for myself what it looks like to put in the time and effort necessary to get good at a thing and really make it happen. I hope to internalize this advice and make this year truly great.
Seeing your videos since space repetition times and still your videos add some values. Even If I say enough of that, he might have nothing new to day, still you take my attention.
Nice work
We need roles that align with our values. More so than passion. I think that’s an important distinction being overlooked.
Subscribed ✅
Excellent point, Don't follow your passion. I don't worry taking wrong decision, take decision and make them correct.
Life Is about discovering yourself and growing just because you suck at guitar the first time doesn’t mean you couldn’t be good at it. It’s about the amount of time you spend on it. Confused by what you mean about when we’re better at something? There are many things you can get better at by practice
First follow passion and then become the best in it 💯⚡
Passion mindset and craftsman mindset go hand in hand.
Passion starts the cycle, but in general craftsman mindset will make you get there
Following passion or what you love doesn't translate to sucess but sucess is pretty subjective to be honest and yes it is hard for passion to be your career capital but that doesn't mean you shouldn't do what you love. This topic is still arguable.
dude, I've been following you for years and this is your best video yet
Thank you so much for sharing the insightful information 🙌
Any time!
GREAT VIDEO. I've been doing that for sometime now and I can start to tell the difference
If my 18 year old self had seen this video 34 years ago my entire life would have been far, far better. This video could replace the entire senior year of high school and provide more actual value.
@@jordycg5818 hes 52 what do you mean?
I share those sentiments, my whole life would have turned out much better. The only other thing is that would my 18 year old self have listen to this advice, I’m not entirely sure I would have.
man you are really so good at breaking down things i never learnt ever i never learnt such things i am greatful for internet connection
Amazing video. Keep rocking. Thanks for suggesting this book.
Ohhh my God I am reading the book right now. I am on the last chapter where he explains how he applied the insights in his own life. This video feels like it was made for me. I can't wait to hear what you have to say Ali. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing!!
@@aliabdaal good job
very interesting take, i definitely don’t agree with everything but i like how you portray the ideas! great video!
Thank you Ali for creating this video!
Thanks for sharing Ali.
This video is so good I can'r ignore it. :) - Seriously though, I agree with the book and always recommend it. I am glad you discussed it here and I like the way you expounded it. I will recommend this video along with the book.
I just love books by author Cal Newport, so good they can't ignore you and Deep work are the best self-improvement books I have ever come across.
yes yes yes his stuff is always picked up late lol....
Thanks ali, ur my fvrt yotuber. U always motivate me to read some interesting books. lots of love for ur interesting videos.
lucky break is one of the best things i've ever heard for dealing with anxiety and fear of starting something
In conclusion don't just follow your passion, become good at it
I am in IT and sit whole day in front of computer, and still passionate to play with computers after work - so i guess it doesnt have to be like that :)
Brilliant video Ali, thank you!
Gave me so many insights! Thank you for this wonderful video.
I thought you were gonna talk baseless stuff but you made real valid points, our passions are much better being our hobbies, and our jobs are better being something we're good at 👍🏻
Your body language is awesome dude!
Watching ur videos for last 2yrs! You helps me alot.
Love from India 💕💕
Really needed this right now... Thankyou!!
This one and Deep Work has improved my life greatly!
Great perspective. Synergistic skills are so undervalued.
Do you have communication skills training module? I think you got me hooked for 18 minutes straight. I feel engaged from the other side of the screen, and I wanna be so good at speaking (like you) that the world can't ignore me. Thanks for speaking at 1.5x speed at 1x video speed. Somehow your hand gestures are not overwhelming. Teach me how-to!
That advice (of follow your passion) has always felt sort of crazy. Feelings: confirmed.
I am ironically a musician in college for a music industry degree, and when he said what the craftsman mindset was, it sounded like exactly what I was doing. My goal is to be impossible to not hire because I want to be able to sing in any genre in any setting and be really good at that. And I'm already decently good at that. So, it's kind of funny when the "don't follow your passion" video just reaffirms that I definitely am doing what I should be, even though it *is* music, because music is that thing I'm really good at. I've seen videos like this before, and it's made me question if music should really be my career, but at this point, I'm just going to try my absolute hardest, and if for some reason it doesn't work out, I have a backup plan. I have a hard time believing that after all the music burn-outs I've been through and come back from, I could ever dislike it enough to stop. It's my entire life.
This is amazing. Thank you for sharing...
Its not terrible advice its just context you can’t say follow your passion without saying about routine discipline. Following passion is key to happiness in life
that's literally what i did my senior project on in high school lol the one thing i learned from high school is that the only thing that can consistently bring good things into my life is following my passions, and if school were taught that way instead of "learn this because i said so" there would be less crimes, and probably less bigotry in the world
This is so true, I'm in medical school but my passion is video editing and so much other hobbies. I still keep them as hobbies that would hopeful develop into an enjoyable multiple source of income but I wouldn't put it before my medical career
But are you also passionate about medicine?
@@sunny100294not really atleast for me
Cal Newport on his podcast channel has hardly gotten 50k views on any video, considering that 'deep work' and 'not following your passion' are his original ideas. While many influencers in the world use his ideas to earn money, I think he deserves far more respect since he has spent much more in his lifetime researching these topics.
Focusing and not following your passion are not new ideas
@@ponternal It is so old news now. I don't know what these people are talking about. It has been the quote for most of the human ages, and it has had so much popularity in the recent couple years.
i guess podcasts arent hos passion
I don’t think he’d be crying into his tea-cup due to the book royalties that bigger channels reviewing his book drive his way.
Thank you! Cleared lot of doubts
This channel is such a blessing! 😭
Couldn't agree more. My passion for making videos grew each time I uploaded. However, the better I am = the more critical I am of my older videos and hide them all 😅
thats not the point of this video bud
no need to hide them though. those are your footprints of your growth
@@saidrakhmiddin9860 yeah you're right but she did it on purpose
You can't overlook passion tbh. If you always have something else in your mind and it lingers with you, then you're going to lack focus, even if you try to improve on something that you've already built on.
¿What do you mean?
@@jadeQ69 u cant focus on X if u have something in your mind (Y) that u want to do sinse it takes away your focus from the X.
@@gutzimmumdo4910 yeah, now that I read the first comment it has always made sense
I don't even know why I didn't understand it 😅
Thank you btw ✌️
And what if the resources( capital, opportunity, etc ) you need to go behind the y are not with you? You're doing x because you didn't have to money for y. Or you desperately need a z that can only be achieved through x. And z is for survival. Y for passion.
The way Ali explain is just amazing ❣️
Keep going DR. Ali 🤙
Genuinely one of the best TH-camrs on the platform.