Comments on: Hiring? Ask about passion.

By: Jaan

Jaan — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:36:08 +0000

Thank you Jon.

Btw, you just created a brilliant mantra…
“Work on something you love, with people who rock”

It’s the only way.

By: Jon Moss

Jon Moss — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:28:45 +0000

Great post Jaan. Love your thoughts on passion…. if you are doing something you love, you are passionate about, and if you get paid for it, then BINGO!

If you’re working like this, you will be in the zone so much more than people who just “work to live”. Work on something you love, with people who rock :-)

By: Jaan

Jaan — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:26:14 +0000

Thank you for your comment.

Yes, asking the passion question is only the first step, follow-up Q’s are needed to asses validity, what aspects of work that they are passionate about, how it manifests itself, how they keep the passion etc.

It is also surprising how many people will say ‘no’ when asked if they are passionate about what they do. They often follow it with ‘this is my job not my life’ or even worse ‘I have a life’. That last answer is really bad as it categorically states that the person thinks work is not part of life and not worth liking (or maybe even doing well), and it implies that those who do like their work don’t have a life.

But, that’s what interviews are for – hopefully weeding out the people that won’t be a good fit.

By: frebro

frebro — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:21:46 +0000

Just asking “are you passionate about what you do?” will just result in a “yes!”. You’ll have to ask the right questions and assess the person’s previous work record in order to determine whether that answer was true or not.