#30: Let's Talk About the Difference Between Passion and Working 24/7
"Breathing, eating, and sleeping" your job is an unhealthy expectation.
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Let's Talk About the Difference Between Passion and Working 24/7
I saw the post above on LinkedIn last week and it really got me riled up. As a social media and content leader, I agree that all of the traits on this person’s list are incredibly important BUT —and it’s a big BUT — there’s a huge difference between having a passion for your work and “breathing, eating, and sleeping it.” Let’s break down why this is flawed messaging.
What is passion?
According to Merriam-Webster, “passion” refers to a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement either for something or about doing something. What that looks like is bringing lots of energy, ideas, drive, and dedication to the things that light you up! And HELL YEAH, I co-sign on that so hard.
What isn’t passion?
Passion isn’t “breathing, eating, and sleeping” your work. It isn’t a lack of boundaries around your personal life. It isn’t prioritizing work over your basic needs. It isn’t running at the wall of success so hard that you knock yourself unconscious.
What is overload burnout?
Overload burnout is defined by researchers as the type of burnout that occurs when you continue to work at an unsustainable pace, clocking long hours without mental breaks. In my industry, we call it churn and burn. According to a survey by Deloitte, 77% of workers said they had experienced burnout. And 90% of those said that stress had negatively impacted their work. A sobering statistic.
Why is it important not to conflate passion with working 24/7?
There are certain professions — social media is one of them — where “breathing, eating, and sleeping” your work is coded language for, “We expect you to be available and online 24/7.” I think we can all acknowledge that this isn’t realistic —especially when you have partners, children, pets, aging parents to care for, hobbies, and life responsibilities to attend to.
Having lived this on-call 24/7 lifestyle for many years, what I can say for sure is that overworking does not make you a rock star at your job. It leads to overload burnout, anxiety, illness, and unhappiness. In my quest to deprogram from urgency culture post-layoff, I’ve gained perspective into just how insidious the expectation that I shouldn’t have any downtime was to my mental health. It really fucked me up.
Why are healthy work boundaries good for productivity?
I’ve been working in digital and social media for more than 15 years and I understand what it takes to have career longevity. Passion, YES. Discipline, dedication, and hard work, YES. Overworking to the point of a breakdown, NO. Breathing, eating, and sleeping your job, NO.
What I most need to sustain and nurture my passion for the long game is time and space. To generate creative ideas, I need alone time, long walks, TV watching time, reading time, regular exercise, and quality sleep. For me, there is a direct correlation between passion, creativity, productivity, and personal time spent offline.
How can we do better?
While I don’t think the person who posted this on LinkedIn meant any harm, it’s irresponsible for influential people to perpetuate the expectation that being passionate about your job means working ALL THE TIME. It’s up to us to think before we speak, to challenge ourselves to be realistic instead of hyperbolic when we talk about work — especially in public forums, especially to junior members of the workforce. That means using intentional language when interviewing, hiring, and training employees. It also means modeling this behavior as a manager or leader.
Read More:
Worthy Time Wasters
My weekly recs to combat doom scrolling.
I’m slightly disappointed that the new season of Vanderpump Rules is giving such big flop energy. When you’re more excited to follow what’s going on offscreen (Rachel’s wild lawsuit, LaLa’s pregnancy, Jax and Brittany’s split) than what’s happening onscreen (Wolf Tahoe), the show has a problem. That’s not the case (so far) with the new season of Summer House, where we’re getting to see Carl and Lindsay’s relationship unravel in real time. 😬
🎥 May December (Netflix)
It’s been on my list for far too long, but I finally got around to watching May December, which totally lived up to the hype. The film is about a popular television actor Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) who heads to Savannah, Georgia, to research a part in a new film about a scandalous tabloid romance (inspired by the relationship between Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau). The love affair between Gracie (Julianne Moore) and Joe (Charles Melton) began when he was 13 and she was 34. Gracie served time in prison when they were caught together. When she was released, the pair were married, and they now have three children together —one in college and two who are about to graduate from high school. At first glance, their untraditional marriage looks more predictable than Elizabeth expected. But soon, her observation brings long-dormant feelings to the surface, and the decades-old scandal reveals deeper and deeper layers.
Penance is a novel written like non-fiction. It seems so real, in fact, I had to Google it several times just to confirm. The book explores the (definitely fictional) murder of 16-year-old Joan Wilson, who was set on fire by three of her classmates. Nearly a decade after the horrifying murder, journalist Alec Z. Carelli has written the definitive account of the crime, drawn from hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, historical research, and correspondence with the killers themselves. The result is a riveting snapshot of lives rocked by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. But how much of the story is true?
Penance is a highly-readable exploration of gender, class, and power that raises troubling questions about the media and our obsession with true crime.
Link-A-Palooza
This week’s clickable bits n’ bobs.
Kate Winslet pushes her characters, and herself, to the edge// How a murder spree collided with Hollywood’s punk revolution // RuPaul doesn’t see how that’s any of your business// Enjoy this impression of Lisa Barlow of RHSLC auditioning for Bridgerton // This woman wants you to freeze // Loved them or hated them, it’s the end of a Che-ra// An extremely thorough guide to the “Who TF Did I Marry” saga // Why all the Internet’s boyfriends are Irish // This woman spent months in an all-consuming affair with a man who refused to meet her in person // It’s been confirmed that Kate Middleton is still alive 👀// Bradley Cooper admits that it took him 8 months before he really loved his daughter 🧐//
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