David Irvine

Valentine’s Day and the start of the winter Olympics has me thinking about passion. Yes, there is lustful passion, but I’m thinking of the passion that inspires people to bring their whole self to their work. You certainly see passion in an Olympic athlete who has devoted their life to mastering a sport. I learned from my father that it’s a lot easier to be disciplined and accountable if you have a passion. For example, when you are lying in bed debating whether you should get  up to exercise it’s a lot easier if your goal is to be an Olympian. Then you have a reason to be disciplined. You are working for a higher purpose that inspires you.

So, in the work of building an engaged organizational culture, how important is passion? I think it’s very important, but I don’t believe you have to find passion in every task. I’ve met hard working janitors that don’t  find passion in cleaning up other people’s messes and I know stay-at-home parents that don’t find a lot of passion in changing diapers or washing clothes. When I was a competitive distance runner, I was passionate about the sport, but I wasn’t necessarily passionate about every one of my workouts. Sometimes it was just painful and hard work. The same is true about being a CEO. Inspired by the results that my clients experience and the work I do, I am not passionate about every aspect of the “job.”  While some are blessed to experience passion in their work (we call that a vocation), for others, their passion lies away from their work (we call that a fulfilling job). Both are valid.

I think it’s unrealistic and even dangerous to think that you have to be passionate about everything you do in order to feel “authentic” or true to yourself. The expectation that you always have to find passion in every responsibility can lead to narcissism, disenchantment, and self-centered resentment. Anyone that’s been married longer than 2 weeks understands this. The real work of marriage begins when the passion wains. Then you discover the true meaning of character and commitment: extending yourself for the greater good – even when the passion isn’t evident.

So how do you ignite energy and engage people in the midst of drudgery? Two ways: first, by connecting with a higher purpose, a vision that provides a strong enough reason for doing the task, and second, by connecting with talent. Both fuel passion and thus engage people. Passion is important in any relationship but it doesn’t necessarily have to come in the nature of the task. It can come with a strong enough reason to perform the task. Passion comes when you connect a task with the context of your life. For an athlete, passion comes in the dream and satisfaction that the tough, lonely workout is taking you toward the vision. It comes in a marriage when you realize that you are serving a more important goal than immediate self-gratification. It comes in a job when you connect the accomplishment of that job with a purpose that matters to you – at work or at home.

Organizations are the stewards of people’s passion and talent, and leadership is about creating an environment where people are inspired to participate with their full selves. This happens when we find out what matters most to people and then support them to experience their day-t0-day jobs as a tool to make it happen. When you are able to maintain this kind of perspective, you don’t just get committed, loyal employees and a better workplace, you get a meaningful life.