Chase Your Passion, Not Your Pension

In a youth focused blog it was almost mandatory for us to bring light to one of the most troubling challenges that the youth face in their lives–, which is choosing a career. Choosing a career is one of the decisions that not only determine our professional life but also the personal life we are going to live for the rest part of our life. There is a dilemma in the mind of youth of whether they choose a secured career with enough bank balance or the career of their dreams which sometimes may just ensure two square meals. Under parental pressure, expectation of society and many other forces youth choose the former and let their passions die.

"Chase your passion, not your pension", said by Denis Waitley, an American motivational speaker and writer is what the youth need to do. Many a time youth fear to step out of their comfort zone and hence they choose a career that seems the most favorable assuring a secured bank balance. This is mistakenly regarded as success in life. But in reality a man can never be a success if he is not in the pursuit of his dreams.

Men in the world have followed their passion and have failed but that has never made them repent for their choice of career because if you really like doing something, then you always know that you will be successful a day or other. Following your passion is not having an occasional hobby. No. Passion consumes you, and it's impossible to not talk or think about it. In a blog called, “The Art of Non-conformity” writer Gretchen Ruben says it gracefully “The problem with pursuing a job for the money is that in most cases, the big money comes only if you achieve a certain stature or goal. If you don't hit that target, you don't get the money – and you haven't much enjoyed the time you've spent in pursuit. If you follow a passion, you'll enjoy your life as you're working to achieve your goal, so if you don't hit it, you won't have spent all that time in vain.


A generous example of men who have pursued their passion is Mr. Chetan Bhagat – A best-selling author and a much loved youth icon. Mr. Bhagat being an IIT- D, IIM-A product, and employed in a bank in Singapore could have had all the worldly pleasures (looking at the handsome money the bank pays to its employees). But after working for 10 years at the bank, he risked it all and chose his passion to write and today the world knows him better than any investment banker working in Singapore. May be that's why he is our youth icon.

Denis Waitley while addressing a group of recently graduated youth said, “A job is something you do for money. But a career is something you do because you're inspired to do it. You want to do it, you love doing it, and you're excited when you do it. And you'd do it even if you were paid nothing beyond food and the basics. You'd do it because it's your life.”

Choose your passion as your career. The quest for happiness and prosperity by pursuing your passion is worth a shot. Imagine how life would be when you can‟t tell the difference between work and play