Landing a Job: Skills First, Passion Second.
In Follow Your Passion Is bad Career Advice for Most People, the author warns readers that focusing on passion is dangerous for most people. I read the title and was a bit nervous (Eek! Us public-interest peeps are bursting from the seams with passion!), but really, what she says is not nearly as severe as the title suggests.
While she recognized that passion wins in some situations, she made it clear that passionate people need to back it up with real skills. I agree with this; it makes sense.
How can you say you’re passionate about a job or company or industry that you know nothing about? How can you say you’re passionate about something you’ve never tried before? If you’re so passionate, why do you have to keep telling people you are (instead of just showing them)?
. . . [Y]ou have to have something tangible, actionable or measurable as evidence that your passion manifests in something real.
She gave four examples of ways to gain skills in your area of passion without having years of traditional, full-time work — and I think they fit well with public interest law!
- Volunteer work in your passion
- A side business in your passion
- An encyclopedic knowledge of your passion
- An extensive network of contacts active and influential in your passion
What else would you add?