Turning Passions Into Careers

At some point in your life you have probably heard the old saying, “if you love what you do then you will never work a day in your life.” And that couldn’t be more true! The men in our roundup will be sure to defend this point as they have turned their passions into careers.

Did you ever wonder how Pandora selects the music you listen to? If you’ve ever listened to music online, chances are that you’ve listened to music handpicked by this man…Justin “J Boogie” Boland is a musicologist. He has turned his one true love and, “craving,” as he puts it, into his career. Boland is a musicologist for Pandora, and gets to choose which songs are streamed and why. It seems like all fun and games, but there is a lot riding on this music genius’ choices. Not only does his reputation depend on it, he is also the potential catalyst for new artists to potentially make a name for themselves. Justin curates multiple genres of music for Pandora, including Hip Hop, R&B, Soul and Reggae.

It’s one thing to do what you love and become successful enough to earn a good living, but as UPROXX reminds us, sometimes doing what you love doesn’t mean making a lot of money. One of the greatest chefs in America, actually makes less money than his employees! Oh, and he works in a restaurant that’s actually hidden within another restaurant. That’s the definition of loving what you do.

Speaking of loving what you do, Cameron Weiss is the last passion-driven businessman on our roundup. He is a vintage leather watchmaker, and his style is unique and timeless. Before WWII, the United States was considered the leader in handmade watches. Weiss wants to restore that tradition with his craftsmanship.