When Passion Fades :: Why Purpose is What Actually Fuels Success and Fulfillment in Your Practice

By Jane Southren

“Follow your passion.”

We’ve all heard it. From graduation podiums. On podcasts. In self-help books. It's one of those go-to pieces of advice that’s meant to inspire—but often misleads.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: passion isn’t enough.

At SGI, we work with lawyers—but what we see holds true across the board. Professionals—smart, capable, accomplished people—burn out not because they lack drive, but because they think they are on a quest to find passion in what they do, and they are hitting a wall. Passion, it turns out, is a beautiful spark. But it rarely survives the grind, sacrifice and responsibility that are part and parcel of building a successful and fulfilling legal practice.

The Pie Shop Problem

There’s a story in The E-Myth Revisited that captures this perfectly in the context of another kind of entrepreneurial business. A woman loves making pies. It’s her passion. So she opens a pie shop—thinking she’ll spend her days elbow-deep in flour and joy.

Instead, she ends up managing payroll, fixing the printer, and dealing with customer complaints. The joy fades. Consumed by all the things she must do to run a successful business, the pies become a chore. What she once loved now feels heavy.

Why? Because passion is personal. It’s something we pursue to make ourselves feel good. And when we try to turn it into a profession—especially one that demands leadership, sacrifice, and scale—it often can’t bear the weight, and fizzles out.

Purpose, on the Other Hand, Has Legs

Purpose isn’t about what lights you up—it’s about what grounds you and serves others. It’s not about what feels good to you in the moment. It’s about what feels right even when it’s hard.

Purpose lives in questions like:

• Who am I in service of with my practice?

• What impact am I trying to make - in my firm, my community, the world?

• What do I want to leave behind?

  
  

These aren’t always easy questions. But they’re the ones that help you keep going when passion fizzles out. They create meaning. And meaning in our work is what sustains and fulfills us. It gives you the grit and the drive to keep going even when it is hard, and provides a deeper level of joy when you see the impact of your service, than does pursuit of a passion.

We’re Wired for Purpose

Human beings are hardwired to care for others. We get more energy from doing something for someone else, than from doing the same thing for ourselves. It's why you can put 80 hours a week into a cause you believe in and feel more energized than you do slogging through 40 hours in a job that doesn’t align.

We’ve seen it in our coaching work—time and again. Lawyers who discover, or rediscover, why they chose this path, reconnect with a kind of fuel that doesn’t run out so easily. They’re clearer. More motivated. More fulfilled. And it shows—in their work, their leadership, and their lives.

Passion is a Spark. Purpose is a Foundation.

Don’t get us wrong—passion has a role. It can spark an idea. It can get you moving. But it won’t keep you going. For that, you need purpose. You need alignment.

That’s why SGI’s Know :: Be :: Do :: methodology starts where it does:

• Know who you are and what really matters to you.

• Be intentional in how you show up and lead.

• Do the things that align with that purpose—even when it’s hard.

Redefining Success

When you operate from purpose, success changes shape. It stops being just about revenue or recognition. It starts being about impact, alignment, and sustainability.

That’s the kind of success we help our clients build. Not because it’s idealistic—but because it lasts.

You Don’t Have to Overhaul Everything. Just Start Listening.

Finding purpose doesn’t mean walking away from your job or making some grand gesture. It often starts with smaller questions:

• When was the last time I felt proud of the work I did?

• Who do I genuinely enjoy helping?

• What kind of work gives me more energy than it takes?

If you don’t like the answers—or don’t have any—that’s okay. It just means it’s time to dig in. That’s the work.

And that’s the heart of our work too—helping people reconnect with what matters most, so they can lead and live from that place.

The Bottom Line

Passion burns hot. But purpose burns long.

So the next time someone tells you to “follow your passion,” take a breath. Instead, ask yourself what your purpose might be—and what small step you could take toward it today.

Because when you find that? You’ll stop chasing energy and start generating it.