“We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained.” – Marie Curie

When I was growing up, most of the people I knew didn’t seem to like what they did for a living.  Whenever people would talk about work, it would usually be some kind of complaint about their boss, or their co-workers, or their customers, or whatever else they could come up with.  It seemed like they were all pretty miserable.

I asked one of those people once, “If it’s so bad, why do you keep doing it?”  Their response was, “It’s not supposed to be fun – that’s why they call it work.”  I remembered that response for years, and it meant that when I was thinking about my career, things like passion or fulfillment or fun were never part of the thought process.

All these years later, I’ve realized that was all wrong.  I’m not saying that work will be fun every minute of every day.  There are of course going to be things that are unpleasant, or frustrating, or energy-taking.  That’s unavoidable.

What I’m saying is that those negative things shouldn’t – and can’t – make up most of your career.  No one has ever been great without energy and passion.  It’s not possible.  We will never do all the things we need to do to be great without those two things.

Honestly, I don’t think you can even be much above average.  It just doesn’t work.  For us to be the leaders our organizations need us to be, we have to be energetic about what we do, and we have to be passionate about doing it.

Look in the mirror and honestly ask yourself: Am I really passionate about what I do?  Does most of what I do at work energize me?  When I’m doing what I do at work, is there a part of me that just wants to do more and more?  Do I lose track of time because I’m so engaged in what I’m doing?

Or, does work wear me out?  Do I dread most of what I’m doing?  Does most of what I do during a given day make me frustrated and exhausted?

Not every minute of your career will be fun, but most of it should energize you.  If it doesn’t, you need to make changes.  Not just so that it’s more fun, but so that you have the chance to be great.  Your organization needs it – and it’s what you were made for.