#215 Why “Follow Your Passion” Is Bad Career Advice—and What To Say Instead

Flourish Coaching

Feb 24, 2026

In this solo episode, Lisa Marker-Robbins continues her series unpacking well-meaning career advice that unintentionally backfires. Following her previous episode challenging the phrase “you can be anything,” Lisa now tackles another cultural staple: “follow your passion.” She explains that this advice often creates pressure, paralysis, and self-doubt rather than motivation, and why passion is rarely the starting point for clarity. Instead, she offers a more grounded, process-driven path—one where competence builds confidence, and confidence can grow into genuine passion over time.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

The unintended consequences of well-meaning career advice
How confidence and passion actually develop over time
The difference between curiosity, competence, and career alignment
Reframing conversations to reduce pressure and increase clarity

Key Takeaways:

Telling young people to “follow your passion” often creates paralysis because it suggests there is one permanent, obvious calling they should already know, when in reality, clarity develops gradually through experimentation and skill building.
Passion is rarely the starting point. Instead, increasing competence builds internal confidence, confidence fuels enjoyment, and that enjoyment can eventually ignite genuine passion.
A passion does not have to become a career. While the average adult will spend an average of 95,000 hours working, many passions can and should live outside the workday in evenings, weekends, and vacations.
Better career conversations focus on identifying tasks and environments that bring energy, exploring what someone is curious enough about to improve at, and asking what they are willing to keep working on even when it feels hard, embracing the powerful word “yet” to normalize growth and long-term development.

“Confidence and possibly passion will be built through competence, not the other way around.” – Lisa Marker-Robbins

Episode References:

Episode 213, Confidence Blueprint: Setting Your Young Person Up for Success with Jennifer Gershberg: https://flourishcoachingco.com/podcast/213-confidence-blueprint-setting-your-young-person-up-for-success-with-jennifer-gershberg/

Get Lisa’s Free on-demand video: THE CAREER IDENTIFICATION COMPASS: How To Be Certain Your 15 To 25 Year Old is On The Right Path to Launch With Confidence–Not Confusion: flourishcoachingco.com/video