Can you really do what you love?

They say do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life. But c’mon. Is that possible in this day and age? On today’s show, we speak to a tech investor who tells us the ingredients he believes are needed to make passion pay. And we hear from an economist who’s run the numbers on luck. <br /><br />Bill Gurley’s book is <a href="https://runnindownadream.com/books/runnin-down-a-dream/" target="_blank">Runnin’ Down a Dream: How to Thrive in a Career You Actually Love</a>.  <br /><em><br />Come see Planet Money live on stage! 12 cities. Details and tix here: </em><a href="https://www.planetmoneybook.com/#tour" target="_blank"><em>planetmoneybook.com/#tour</em></a><strong> </strong><br /><br /><strong>Related episodes: <br /></strong><a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/09/08/nx-s1-5532097/teamwork-actually-does-make-the-dream-work" target="_blank">Teamwork actually does make the dream work</a>  <br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/05/24/1101064874/why-women-make-great-bosses" target="_blank">Why women make great bosses</a>  <br /><em><br />For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at </em><a href="http://plus.npr.org/" target="_blank"><em>plus.npr.org</em></a><em>.</em> <em>Fact-checking by </em><a href="https://www.npr.org/people/1268825622/sierra-juarez" target="_blank"><em>Sierra Juarez</em></a><em>. </em><em>Music by </em><a href="https://dropelectric.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank"><em>Drop Electric</em></a><em>. Find us: </em><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@planetmoney" target="_blank"><em>TikTok</em></a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/planetmoney/" target="_blank"><em>Instagram</em></a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/planetmoney" target="_blank"><em>Facebook</em></a>, <a href="https://www.npr.org/newsletter/money" target="_blank"><em>Newsletter</em></a><em>. </em> <br /><br />See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>