Before my MBA program started, Wharton sent us a self-assessment test on business and finance to see if we needed some extra classes to handle the course-load.
While taking the test, I realized I didn’t even know the difference between revenue and profit — I was practically business-illiterate.
Yet, just two years later, I was in love with finance and valuation. Even after my MBA, I kept learning from Prof Aswath Damodaran’s videos.
Starting as a total novice, I had now become passionate about finance.
My ‘passion’ did not come from watching Wall Street movies or reading ‘Liar’s Poker’; it gradually evolved over months and years, as I got deep into finance and valuation, discovering their beauty and rigor.
My passion for finance was not ‘love at first sight.’ It was cultivated.
Watching Elon Musk talk about rocketry doesn’t make you passionate about space technology – it just excites you. Excitement is not passion.
If you feel that your passion keeps changing, you are probably talking about excitement.
Passion comes from mastery, which in turn comes from years of grind. Invest the time. Embrace the grind. No shortcuts.
One day, you would have created your passion.
– Rajan