Should people pursue what they love, or what they are good at?

Harry Stebbings · Sep 18, 2023 · hedged

Passion often comes from being good at something, and one gets good by repetition, so the hard work comes before the enjoyment

No one enjoys the gym at first; you start enjoying it after going again and again

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Scott Farquhar · Oct 9, 2023

Passion can also be built rather than found — as you get good at something you learn to love it more, so founders should try things on for size

Competence breeds affection for the work; he didn't start out loving bug tracking but grew into the larger mission

Scope: stated alongside the belief that you must love what you do

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Harry Stebbings · Apr 11, 2025

People tend to come to love what they're good at, which makes early parental encouragement especially important — praising a child at something leads them to love it, invest more time, and get better.

Competence generates affection for the activity, which creates a virtuous loop of more practice and more skill.

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Jean-Michel Lemieux · Mar 20, 2024

Career advice should be 'do something you're good at' rather than 'do something you love'

There's no wrong path if you keep doing something you're good at; his own guidance counselor spotted what he was good at and it worked out

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Harry Stebbings · Apr 11, 2025

Scott Galloway advises people not to do what they love but to do what they're good at.

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