Recently, the social algorithms have been serving me up videos and interview snippets from NYU Professor Scott Galloway. One of Professor Galloway's main points, which I have seen on repeat across multiple platforms, is this: anyone who tells you to follow your passion is already rich. Follow your talent.
He states that you should "find out what you're good at and then invest 10,000 hours in it — and become great at it." According to Galloway, what you will become passionate about is being great at something and reaping the rewards, including financial ones, that come with excellence.
On its face, these comments seem profound, especially when Professor Galloway points out that many of these "follow your passion" messages come from millionaires and billionaires who didn't make their money following their passion.
However, Galloway, while earnest, presents a view shaped by a society where often only white men are handed the microphone. His comments are just the lie of meritocracy dressed in progressive attire—work hard, and you'll reap the benefits.
If you are a person in any marginalized group, you know that life under an oppressive culture does not work that way.
For women of color, following our passion isn't a luxury or a whimsical choice; it's often a necessity—a way to escape the exploitation and inequities rampant in corporate America.
We start our careers leveraging our talents, only to face hostile work environments, discrimination, microaggressions, feelings of isolation, unequal pay, and mounting debt. These challenges compound, affecting our health, family life, and self-worth.
We don't follow our passion because we are already wealthy or because it's the cool thing to do. We do it because we can't take it anymore. We can no longer sacrifice ourselves to a system that does not see, value, or pay us what we are worth. We follow our passion because we have to create our own table and seat if we want the true fulfillment that comes from a job well done.
Instead of repeating platitudes, perhaps Professor Galloway could address his influential peers about the stark inequities in:
Venture capital funding (only 1.9% of venture capital dollars are invested in women and 0.48% in people of color);
Corporate leadership (13.7% and 12.5% of companies in the Fortune 500 and S&P 500 have women and people of color in C-suite positions, respectively); and
Political representation (there are only 25 female senators and 12 minorities).
Those conversations should focus on what they can do to create opportunities for those who don't fit the traditional mold—those who the current systems of power do not support.
Whether marginalized groups follow their passion or their talent isn't the problem. It's the lack of equity in our system at all levels that is.
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In power and solidarity,
Toya