In recent years, there has been a clear shift towards finding our purpose at work. It’s a shift that was captured by Simon Sinek in 2009, when he urged as all to “start with why”. Indeed, research from Cornell suggests that aligning our purpose with status at work can be a short cut towards happiness.
Things are not always clear cut, however, with research from University College Dublin suggesting that passion can also lead to burnout as we pour too much of ourselves into our work. Similarly, a high degree of passion for our job can rub up those who lack the same passion the wrong way.
Too passionate
A recent study from the Kellogg School of Management looks into this to understand whether having passion for our work can affect how others perceive us.
The researchers focused on the relationship between buyers and sellers of a range of products and services. They wanted to understand whether passion in sellers affected the interplay in any way. Perhaps understandably they found that a passionate seller is usually perceived more positively by buyers, who view the quality and value of the product or service more highly when the seller clearly has a passion for their work. This translates into a general willingness to pay more for it.
Interestingly, however, the reverse seems to happen for sellers. When they’re passionate about their work, they’re less inclined to charge the true price for their work, and often end up undercharging, even though buyers are often willing to pay more.
Attracting interest
The researchers found that when sellers were able to convey a passion for their work in Facebook ads, they received 40% higher click-through rates than peers who weren’t so passionate. This translated into 17% lower cost-per-click fees as a result of the higher engagement.
This was replicated in a second experiment involving a food stall at a university fair, where volunteers were giving away brownies. People could choose from two identical brownies, with the only difference being a note associated with each, one of which indicated that the chef loved making the brownies, whereas the other showcased the popularity of the brownie. As before, people tended to view the brownie accompanied by the note from the chef more highly than the popular one.
The research shows that when buyers believe a product was made with enjoyment, they think it’s of higher quality and worth a higher price. Buyers often see this enjoyment as a sign of intrinsic motivation—valuing the process itself rather than just the outcome or rewards. This connection between enjoyment and quality echoes studies on “flow” or “being in the zone,” where creators get fully immersed in their work.
Charging less
In one experiment, researchers posted a data-entry job with several tasks requiring similar skill levels. Participants reported which tasks they enjoyed most and set their minimum rates for each. Strikingly, they were willing to charge 14.5% less for the tasks they liked more. While buyers were willing to pay more when they sensed production enjoyment, sellers were willing to accept less.
The reason is that sellers, too, see value in enjoying their work, which they believe improves quality, but they still tend to charge less. When setting prices, sellers weigh factors like materials, advertising costs, and market targets, but they also consider less tangible things—such as the work’s difficulty and how much they enjoy it. A plumber, for example, might ask for higher pay for an unpleasant task but accept less for something they enjoy.
Enjoyment, then, sometimes feels like part of a seller’s “payment,” leading them to charge less. But how much enjoyment affects perceived value depends on the skill involved. When buyers think a task requires little skill, such as making a simple cocktail, they don’t associate enjoyment with higher quality. However, if the work seems skillful or intensive—like a detailed handmade piece—buyers place more value on the creator’s enjoyment.
These insights have useful takeaways for buyers and sellers alike. Buyers should be aware of how perception of production enjoyment may unconsciously drive them to pay more. And sellers could benefit from sharing their enjoyment of the work. On platforms like Etsy or Fiverr, for example, sellers rarely mention “enjoyment” in their profiles. But when they do, it could attract more interest, as buyers appreciate products made with genuine care and pleasure.
