Why 'Follow Your Passion' Is Advice for the Privileged

Key Takeaways

• This piece focuses on career strategy realities in India, not outlier narratives.
• Compensation numbers should be interpreted with role scope, market cycle, and switching friction.
• Use decision frameworks and evidence checks before acting on title or salary headlines.

On This Page

• The Expectation
• The Reality
• Salary and Growth Reality
• Where Most People Get Stuck
• Who Should Avoid This Path
• Decision Framework
• Originality Lens
• Final Verdict

The Expectation

"Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life." This advice is everywhere—commencement speeches, career books, LinkedIn posts. The message: Find your passion, pursue it, and success will follow. Life's too short to do work you don't love.

The expectation: Passion leads to success. If you're not passionate about your job, you're doing something wrong. The goal of career planning should be finding what you love, not just what pays.

This feels inspiring. It also reflects a particular worldview.

The Reality

Who Gets to Follow Their Passion:

The Math of "Following Passion":

Let's compare two scenarios for a 22-year-old graduate:

Scenario A - Following Passion (Writing)

• Starting salary: Rs 4 LPA (content writing role)
• Year 5 salary: Rs 8 LPA (if still employed)
• Financial obligations: Parents need Rs 20,000/month support
• Savings at Year 5: Rs 0 (negative)
• Family stress level: Extreme

Scenario B - Practical Choice (IT)

• Starting salary: Rs 8 LPA
• Year 5 salary: Rs 20 LPA
• Financial obligations: Same Rs 20,000/month
• Savings at Year 5: Rs 10 lakhs+
• Family stress level: Low

Who has the privilege to choose Scenario A? Someone with no family obligations and backup support.

Case Study - The Passion Tax:

Arjun, 28, vs. Vikram, 28 (college friends):

Both were passionate about filmmaking at 22.

Arjun (From wealthy Delhi family):

• Pursued filmmaking immediately
• Parents funded 5 years of struggle
• Got break at 27, now successful AD
• Net worth at 28: Family-supported (unknown, but stable)

Vikram (First-generation college graduate):

• Took IT job to support family
• Made films on weekends (sacrificing rest)
• Still aspiring at 28, now earning Rs 22 LPA in tech
• Net worth at 28: Rs 12 lakhs (self-built)

Arjun tells LinkedIn his success came from "following passion." Vikram's story about privilege goes untold.

Related context: Salary Reality Check, CTC Decoder, more in Career Strategy.

Salary and Growth Reality

Cross-check your take-home with the CTC Decoder and compare ranges in Salary Reality.

Where Most People Get Stuck

Where Passion-Followers Get Stuck:

The "I'll Make It Work" Denial:

You've been pursuing passion for 5 years. Not broke, but not thriving. Pride prevents admitting the math isn't working. You keep telling yourself "next year will be better" while savings dwindle.

The Sunk Cost Trap:

"I've invested 6 years in this passion career. I can't quit now." But sunk costs are sunk. The question is: what's the best path FORWARD, ignoring years already spent?

The Identity Crisis:

Your passion became your identity. "I am a filmmaker." Admitting the career isn't working feels like admitting YOU aren't working. They're not the same thing.

Finding the Realistic Path:

1. Audit Honestly: What's your per-hour earnings in passion work? Compare to what you could earn otherwise. Is the gap sustainable?
2. Set a Deadline: "If I'm not earning Rs X in passion career by age Y, I pivot." Remove infinite runway.
3. Hybridize: 9-5 in practical field + passion projects nights/weekends is a valid life. It's not "giving up."
4. Redefine Passion: Maybe your passion isn't the activity—it's the underlying value. "I love creating" can be satisfied in many careers.
5. Build Financial Runway First: With Rs 30 lakhs saved, you can take 3 years of passion risk. Without it, you can't.

If this matches your current situation, run the Resignation Risk Analyzer before making your next move.

Who Should Avoid This Path

"Follow Your Passion" Is Wrong For:

• First-generation earners: Family depends on practical income
• Those with education loans: ROI must be positive or loans drown you
• Primary breadwinners: Others can't eat your passion
• Those without backup plans: Failure means poverty, not "learning experience"
• Late starters: At 30, you have less runway to figure things out

"Follow Your Passion" Might Work For:

• Those with family wealth: Can survive years of low/no income
• People with established practical income: Already financially stable, exploring passion
• Those with rare, monetizable talents: Genuine exceptional ability finds market
• Highly connected in passion field: Entry path already exists
• Young with no obligations: Low cost to experiment

Decision Framework

Use this quick framework before changing role, company, or specialization.

• If your take-home is not compounding with experience, benchmark externally before accepting internal narratives.
• If role expectations keep rising without title/pay movement, escalate with documented outcomes.
• If growth path is unclear beyond 6-9 months, run a switch-or-specialize decision cycle.

Common Mistakes Checklist

• Treating outlier salaries as planning baselines.
• Using title changes as a substitute for capability changes.
• Delaying market benchmarking until after compensation stagnates.

Real Scenario Snapshot

A professional stays in-role despite rising responsibility and flat pay. Growth recovers only after external benchmarking and a deliberate switch-or-specialize decision.

Originality Lens

Contrarian thesis: Career outcomes usually degrade from quiet trade-offs, not sudden failures.

Non-obvious signal: When responsibility rises but decision rights stay flat, stagnation risk rises even before pay slows.

Evidence By Section