A lot of jobs now specifically ask applicants to be passionate about what they do. The logic is that this passion will drive candidates to herculean feats and ensure that we truly enjoy what it is that we do. Research from Florida State University reminds us, however, that passion can also be a pathway toward burnout.
“We all know people who are gung-ho but who don’t have a plan or a defined mission and go forward anyway,” the researchers explain. “Passion has to be tempered, moderated and managed as a resource to make its maximum positive impact.”
Ego resilience
The key is something the researchers refer to as “ego resilience”, which when present helps to ensure that passion is positive rather than negative.
Ego resilience encompasses the capacity for sound self-regulation, the conscious choice to readjust oneself, the willingness to receive input from trusted individuals, and the ability to assess one’s mental and physical well-being, adapting as necessary or seeking assistance to do so.
“In the workplace, ego resilience can mean things like pausing, reflecting on where you’re at for a minute and seeing if you can get someone else on board,” the researchers explain. “It’s the ability to realize that it’s not always OK to keep going forward, especially if you’re going in the wrong direction.”
The right kind of passion
According to the study, employees with strong passion and elevated ego resilience demonstrated positive attitudes, behaviors, and well-being outcomes, whereas those with low ego resilience did not. For instance, individuals who were passionate about their work and possessed ego-resilience traits reported lower levels of stress and exhaustion, as well as higher job satisfaction.
Conversely, those with passion but lacking in such resources experienced more anxiety, feelings of burnout, and less favorable sentiments towards their work.
“Those who are passionate but couldn’t take a step back and realize they need to slow down, pause, evaluate and determine a course of action, it leads to detrimental effects,” the researchers explain. “Among the big consequences is you can lose those social supports that lead to desired outcomes. No one wants to work with someone who is going a million miles an hour but going nowhere.”
In order to prevent these negative outcomes, the study suggests that human resource departments implement employee training programs focused on stress management and achieving work-life balance, as well as provide leadership training to help managers recognize signs of low resilience in their employees.
This issue has been especially prevalent in certain areas, such as nursing, where people go into the work out of a real passion for it, but burnout can easily result. This contributes to a significant shortage in the profession.
“People go into nursing because they want to help people get better—it has passion embedded in it,” the researchers explain. “Passion is not a bad thing. It’s an important resource and we can’t squander it by not using it well,” he said.
The authors elaborate that additional essential professions such as educators and emergency responders are similarly confronting burnout linked to inadequately adjusted and supported levels of occupational passion.
