Those who truly love their work keep going where others give up.
Passion is a success factor that many underestimate – above all in its healthy form: people who enjoy their work without letting it rule them stay with it longer.
The quality in detail
Four steps through the quality: understand, check, connect, apply. Open any topic to read more.
The core messageWhat the quality means – and what it doesn’t
Passion for your work gives you energy that overcomes resistance and is contagious. When you love what you do, you keep going even when it gets hard.
- It does not mean
- That passion replaces skill. It drives you, but you still need knowledge, practice and sound judgment.
- That you have to love every task. Passion is directed at what you work for, not at every single activity along the way.
- Strictly speaking
- Keeping going is not the same as succeeding, and success without love for the work does happen. What is supported is that passion is linked to persistence, performance and well-being.
- Research distinguishes harmonious from obsessive passion. Harmonious passion fits into your life and is linked to good outcomes; obsessive passion controls you and leads to strain and conflict.
- Applies to
- Everything you do with devotion: your job, your service at church, your volunteer work at a club and the way you lead your family.
The explanationSuccess without loving one’s work does happen.
Success without loving one’s work does happen.
Yet education and talent alone don’t carry you far, and perseverance pays off above all where passion is added to it.
Through passion, leaders can achieve a great deal – in a company, a church or a club. It is a source of energy that helps overcome resistance and is contagious to others – as long as it doesn’t turn into a compulsion that wears out yourself and others.
The signs3 signs the quality is present · 3 that it is missing
- You speak with enthusiasm about the purpose of your work, and others want to be part of it.
- Setbacks don’t take away your drive, because you know what you are working for.
- Your passion leaves room for family, rest and other people.
- You do your tasks only out of duty, and the people around you feel the missing energy.
- You can no longer say what actually excites you about your work.
- Work crowds out everything else, you expect the same from others, and you react irritably when someone asks for limits.
The research5 sources: 2 theories, 2 meta-analyses, 1 primary study · 2003–2020 · with the limits of the research
- low
- moderate
- high
Moderate – Harmonious and obsessive passion; passion at work.
- 2003Robert J. Vallerand et al.
Dualistic model: harmonious and obsessive passion.
- 2009Melissa S. Cardon et al.
Entrepreneurial passion: nature and effect on goal pursuit.
- 2018Jon M. Jachimowicz et al.
Perseverance predicts performance only in combination with passion.
Harmonious passion is associated with good outcomes, obsessive with strain and conflict. “Only those who love” is too absolute.
The originJohn C. Maxwell · “Passion”
- 1999OriginJohn C. Maxwell
The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader, Quality 12
- PassionIn essence: If you love your work, you have the strength to achieve great things and carry others along.
- todayWEGVISOR: Passion
The WEGVISOR version, “Passion”, puts Maxwell’s idea in the core statement “Those who truly love their work keep going where others give up” and drops the overstated version that only this makes success possible. This fits the documented link between passion and persistence; the distinction between harmonious and obsessive passion still matters.
The related qualities and lawsL16 Big Mo · Q03 Commitment
Passion is often the spark that ignites momentum. Your enthusiasm spreads to the team and gives the work drive.
Passion gives energy, commitment gives consistency. When your enthusiasm fades for a while, your promise carries you on.
The action points5 stages of growth – from first awareness to passing it on
- Become aware Tonight, write down one moment of your day when you lost track of time at work, and what exactly drew you in.
- Lay the foundations This week, write down why you chose your work, and tell one person around you about it in your next conversation.
- Make it a habit Every Monday, write down one goal for the week that drives you personally, and on Fridays briefly check where you showed your enthusiasm and where you held it back.
- Deepen deliberately Pick the task that drains you most right now, name the opportunity in it, and ask two people you work closely with how much enthusiasm they currently sense in you.
- Pass it on Help a colleague or people you support find out what they are passionate about and shape tasks around it; if you lead a team or leaders, make this a habit so that enthusiasm holds even without you driving it.
The reflection questions5 questions for you or a conversation with others
- What really excites me about my work – and do the people around me notice?
- When did I last talk about my work with real joy?
- Is my passion harmonious, or is it beginning to control me?
- What is draining my energy right now, and what can I change about it?
- How do I involve others in what drives me – and what in my area of responsibility stifles their enthusiasm?
Take your time with one question. Write down your answer – or talk it over with someone you trust.
The picture to rememberA flame that never stands still: energy rises and carries others along.
- A flame that never stands still: energy rises and carries others along.
What passion looks like in practice
“Partido a partido” – game by game to the top
When Diego Simeone took over Atlético Madrid in 2011, the club was an underdog behind Real and Barça. With his motto “game by game” and sheer energy on the touchline, he won their first league title since 1996 in 2014.
A broken leg in 1999 – then five straight titles
In 1999 Michael Schumacher broke his leg at Silverstone. He came back, worked on the car with his technicians as an “engineer in the cockpit” and won five consecutive world titles with Ferrari from 2000 to 2004.
Champions again after 30 years: Klopp’s fire
After narrowly missing the title in 2019, Jürgen Klopp refused to be discouraged: Liverpool won the Champions League and, in 2020, their first English title in 30 years. His energy spread to players and fans alike.
