According to the internet, Confucius said, “Choose a job you love, [and] you will never have to work a day in your life.” He even created a great infographic on this, except it’s just one of those memorable fake internet quotes. That said, the notion that we are better off aligning our careers with our interests is remarkably prevalent, as is advice on “following your passions” or optimizing your career for your intrinsic motivation.

To be sure, there are many reasons to adhere to this principle. First, you are much more likely to identify with your work persona when your career is focused on meaningful work and your professional self is aligned with your overall self-concept. As noted by William Kahn, professor of organizational behavior at Boston University’s business school, this tends to translate into higher levels of employee engagement and job satisfaction, which is generally good for the employer. Second, passion and interest lubricate learning and development, so the energy (and ROI) associated with skill development will be significantly higher when you love what you do.

It actually starts very early in life. Early in childhood, kids differ in both their interests and abilities, and parents often react to reinforce the connection between the two. So, for instance, if a child is musical she or he may be interested in playing with instruments; when parents notice this they will likely reinforce this skill-interest connection by organizing music lessons for the child, which will hopefully not reduce the child’s interest!

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