It's Okay If You're Not Passionate About Your 9-5

Has someone ever made you feel like a bad employee because all they can do is talk about how much they love their job, and you're just trying to make it until 5:15pm so you can go home to your cats and books? Because I certainly have.

I'm here to tell you that it is okay if you are not passionate about your 9-5.

I believe there is an immense societal pressure to find the career. The job. The job that is the perfect fit with the perfect title, office, pay rate, and benefits. The reality is far more complicated than that. While it is certainly a good time for employees right now because of the high demand for talent and the abundance of open roles, many people are still struggling to find a role that ticks every single one of their boxes, and a finding a job that allows them to pursue their passions seems to be the most elusive of them all.

Passion so often comes in the form of hobbies or processes that people do not necessarily want to monetize. While some people want to monetize every single thing they can, others prefer to enjoy the things they like without necessarily feeling the pressure to create an income stream from it. Both are valid — passions come in many different forms. The cool thing about passions is that they are different for every person, allowing for the creation of new art and content, regardless of monetization status.

I believe it's pretty damn rare to find a 9-5 job that comes with a pay rate, benefits schedule, and responsibilities that allow someone to be fully passionate about the work that they're doing. It's just not the nature of the corporate industry to allow such things to happen. Most of the people I know who work in corporate America are not passionate about their 9-5. Their 9-5 is merely the vehicle that pays the bills, which allows them to pursue their calling outside of work.

This is also interesting because some people work in industries they are actually passionate about dismantling or changing. For me, and for so many others, my 9-5 is simply what pays the bills. Personally, I work in banking. I'm not particularly passionate about banking as an industry — in fact, there are quite a few facets of banking that I think are predatory and keep people in poverty. I am, however, passionate about financial literacy, particularly for women, BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ individuals, and I seek to pursue that outside of my 9-5 role. As is probably apparent by my presence on Vocal, I am also passionate about writing. As I pursue my MA in English & Creative Writing, I find myself seeking connection with fellow writers and content creators. This ability to connect with other writers is part of what makes Vocal such a powerful platform.

Regardless of whether or not you love your 9-5 role, I think it's about time that we let go of the expectation that your 9-5 encompasses responsibilities that you are truly passionate about. For most of us, our 9-5 just pays the bills, and allows the monetary ability and freedom to pursue our passions outside of the office. And that is completely okay.

Explore your passions outside of the office, and don't let anyone tell you that you aren't in a good place in your career because you aren't completely happy in your role. Your career does not necessarily have to be your biggest passion in life — there are plenty of other ways to spark passion that do not involve your job or career.

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