The Biggest Lie in Business

We’ve all heard it before: “Follow your passion, and the rest will fall into place.” It’s a lovely, glittery concept, often found stamped on bumper stickers, motivational posters, and the Instagram bios of folks selling “lifestyle coaching.” But here’s the thing — it’s a terrible piece of advice. Misguided at best, destructive at worst. Passion is fleeting, fickle, and often unreliable. Instead, the more grounded path to success is following what stirs your curiosity. Passion burns bright and fizzles out, but curiosity is a slow-burning ember that can keep you moving forward, steadily illuminating your path.

Let’s break it down. “Follow your passion” assumes you’ll be able to consistently predict what you’re interested in long-term. It assumes you’ll stay enamored with a specific pursuit as life changes, as you change. Spoiler alert: You won’t. Studies show that we’re not as static as we’d like to think — our personalities, interests, and priorities shift dramatically over time. What you’re passionate about at 22 won’t look the same when you’re 42. That’s why the advice to follow your passion often leads people to disappointment, burnout, and the realization that their “dream job” has become a nightmare.

Passion vs. Curiosity: The Case for Longevity

Passion is like a sugar rush. It feels intense, thrilling, and often all-consuming. But it’s also quick to fade. Curiosity, on the other hand, is a slower, more enduring driver. When you’re curious about something, you keep coming back to it — not because it consumes you, but because it keeps tugging at your sleeve, whispering, “There’s more to discover here.” Curiosity is about staying interested in the unknown, the untested, the ambiguous. It doesn’t demand your complete commitment from the start. Rather, it invites you to explore, to question, to engage.

Think about some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs, scientists, and creators. Steve Jobs was a curious mind, often experimenting, dabbling, and tinkering with ideas. Jobs wasn’t always “passionate” about computers or design; he was simply fascinated by the intersections of technology, design, and human interaction. Elon Musk, for all his eccentricities, follows his curiosity from electric cars to space exploration to brain-machine interfaces. Passion didn’t pull him into a single lane. Instead, curiosity kept him branching out, testing assumptions, and redefining industries. The lesson here is that curiosity provides the space to pivot, explore, and redefine what success looks like without the pressure of a singular, grand passion.

Why Passion Fades, and Curiosity Grows

Passion is exhausting. When you’re passionate about something, it often consumes your every thought and ounce of energy. It’s all-consuming — and that’s the problem. Maintaining that level of intensity is unsustainable over the long haul. People who follow their passion often find themselves hitting a wall, wondering why the thing they once loved now feels like a chore. That’s because passion demands a lot, but it doesn’t necessarily give much back.

Curiosity, by contrast, is low maintenance. It doesn’t require you to pour every last drop of yourself into it. Curiosity is a tap you can turn on and off. You can pursue it in small, manageable doses. It doesn’t drain you — it fuels you. And the more you feed it, the stronger it grows. Curiosity is like a muscle: the more you use it, the more capable it becomes. And unlike passion, curiosity doesn’t run out when you encounter setbacks or challenges. It’s resilient, adaptive, and unyielding in the face of adversity.

Consider it this way: passion asks for commitment upfront, while curiosity lets you test the waters. It’s the difference between marrying someone after the first date and letting a relationship evolve naturally. Following curiosity allows for experimentation, the kind that yields insight and experience without the crushing expectation of unrelenting enthusiasm.

How to Follow Your Curiosity

If following your passion is misguided, what should you do instead? Simple: ask questions. Embrace the urge to explore new ideas, industries, skills, and networks. Allow your curiosity to lead you down paths that might not seem immediately profitable or productive. Those explorations are the seeds of innovation, and they’re often the foundation of a fulfilling career. Curiosity opens doors you never knew existed, pushing you beyond your comfort zone without the pressure of “finding your one true calling.”

1. Ask More Questions: Curious people are relentless question-askers. They want to know why things work the way they do, why people behave as they do, why markets shift the way they do. If you’re curious, keep asking questions. Don’t settle for surface answers; dig deeper, and you’ll find avenues to build knowledge, skill, and confidence.
2. Experiment Without Expectations: Curiosity gives you permission to try things without the expectation that you’ll stick with them forever. Interested in coding? Take a class. Think finance might be your calling? Dive into some financial analysis tutorials. The point isn’t to lock yourself into a particular path but to keep building a toolkit that can evolve as your interests do.
3. Be Comfortable with Uncertainty: Following curiosity means you won’t always know where you’re headed — and that’s okay. Embrace the idea that your path might be winding. Curiosity thrives in ambiguity, where the next step isn’t clear. It’s in these uncertain spaces that you’ll find unexpected insights and opportunities.
4. Build a Network of the Curious: Curiosity is contagious. Surround yourself with people who are also following their own curiosity. They’ll introduce you to new ideas, fields, and perspectives you might not encounter otherwise. Being part of a community that values exploration over fixed passions creates an environment that nurtures growth.

The Future of Work Belongs to the Curious

In a world that’s rapidly changing, curiosity is a superpower. Passion locks you into a singular focus, while curiosity keeps you agile, adaptable, and open to change. As technology evolves and industries transform, the people who thrive will be those who can shift gears, retool, and reimagine their roles. Curiosity-driven individuals aren’t afraid of reinvention because they’re used to change. They’ve spent their careers asking questions, adapting to new information, and exploring new fields. This adaptability is their edge.

The truth is, passion alone is inadequate for navigating the demands of the modern workforce. Passion doesn’t prepare you for the hard questions, the pivots, the competition. Curiosity, however, gives you a toolkit to handle those moments with poise and resilience. A curious mind sees obstacles as puzzles to solve, not walls to hit. A curious person sees failure as data, not as a dead end. Curiosity turns challenges into opportunities for growth and learning.

Rethinking Success

We need to rethink our metrics of success. Rather than asking, “Are you passionate about what you do?” ask yourself, “Does this path keep my curiosity alive?” Passion might make you feel like you’re sprinting, but curiosity will help you go the distance. It encourages consistent engagement, growth, and adaptation over the long haul. And in a world where change is the only constant, curiosity is the most sustainable driver of success.

The next time you’re tempted to “follow your passion,” take a beat. Ask yourself instead what you’re curious about. What questions do you keep coming back to? What are you willing to explore, learn, and even fail at without needing fireworks to keep you motivated? Passion may sound exciting, but curiosity is what will get you out of bed every morning, eager to take on the world — no fireworks required.

In the end, you don’t need to be fueled by passion. You need to be driven by an insatiable curiosity that pushes you to keep asking, keep learning, and keep growing. Passion may flicker and fade, but curiosity is a light that won’t go out.

Hi there, I’m Brian, and in addition to this Medium, I wrote The Main Thing is The Main Thing. As you walk this path, not only do you become a beacon of clarity in a foggy world, but you morph into a version of yourself that’s bolder, brighter, and unapologetically authentic. Make sure your main thing is the lead vocalist, and watch as the symphony around you changes its tune.