Back in the dim and distant past, job candidates had interests or hobbies. Those interests could be introspective: reading a book was a perfectly acceptable way of spending your spare time. No longer. Today you will probably be asked if you have a “personal passion project”, and the more exhausting your answer sounds, the better. Go white-water rafting, preferably with orphans. Help build motorway crossings for endangered animals. If you must read, at least do so in the original.
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Passion is becoming a staple for workplace success. A new piece of research from Jon Jachimowicz and Hannah Weisman of Harvard Business School includes an analysis of 200m job postings in America. It finds that the number which explicitly mention “passion” rose over time, from 2% in 2007 to 16% in 2019.
Career websites offer helpful advice on how to come across as passionate about deeply ordinary pursuits. Here is a suggestion from one site on how to talk to prospective employers about putting things into an oven. “I love the process of researching new recipes and testing them out. I’ve been writing up my experiences with baking for the past three years…I’m very detail-oriented, and love the scientific aspects of baking. However, I’m also a very social person, and use my baking as a chance to get together with friends and family.” Do not say: “I just really like cake.”
Once inside an organisation, passion for the job also seems to be a good way to get ahead. Another paper by Mr Jachimowicz, along with Ke Wang of Harvard Kennedy School and Erica Bailey of Columbia Business School, found that employees who were regarded as more passionate than their peers got more positive feedback as well as more promotion and training opportunities. Other research has found that workers who cry at…
2023-02-09 09:25:11 The pitfalls of loving your job a little too much
Original from www.economist.com
In today’s ever-evolving work culture, it can be easy to get lost in loving your job a little too much. From the heady feeling of success to a good team dynamic, people can easily fall in love with their profession. While having a passion for your job is a great thing, it’s important to understand that when a job becomes all-encompassing, it can be dangerous.
One of the major pitfalls of loving your job a little too much is a tendency to burn out quickly. When work is your entire life, it’s easy to become overworked and overstressed without feeling like you can take a break. Even if you love what you’re doing, this need to constantly work can quickly lead to feelings of exhaustion and frustration.
Another problem of loving your job too much is that it can become difficult to establish boundaries. In a competitive work environment, it’s easy to become too devoted to your job and forget that it’s important to establish balance and have time outside of work to relax. This can also lead to blurred professional and personal boundaries, which can be detrimental to relationships with colleagues and personal ones alike.
Moreover, loving your job too much can also mean you value it over other aspects of life. Someone who is overly obsessed with their job may put in long hours, sacrifice their hobbies and leisure activities, and miss important family events. This kind of dedication can be damaging to a person’s overall well-being, leading to exhaustion and depression.
To avoid the pitfalls of loving your job a little too much, it’s important to practice self-care and set boundaries. It’s essential to maintain a good balance between your job and the rest of your life and to take regular breaks from work. Taking the time to relax and having a clear division between professional and personal lives can help ensure that you stay healthy and productive in your job.