When Loving Your Job Becomes Liability

What does it mean to love your job?

The language of love has become increasingly common in contemporary discussions of work . People say they want to love their jobs, organizations promise roles candidates will love, and recruitment ads frame employment as an emotional commitment rather than an economic transaction.

Yet despite its ubiquity, the idea of "loving your job" is rarely defined with precision. What does it actually mean to love your job? And is that kind of love always good for employees and organizations?

These questions matter for both employees and organizations. Our recent research set out to understand what employees are describing when they say they love their work, and whether that experience is always advantageous.

What does it actually mean to love your job?

In a series of studies led by Michelle Inness at the University of Alberta and co-authored with Kevin Kelloway at Saint Mary's University , our research team set out to answer a simple question: what does it mean to love your job?

Across multiple studies involving thousands of employees, we found that loving your job is not the same as being satisfied with your work or feeling engaged. Instead, it reflects three experiences coming together.

The first is enthusiasm for the work itself. People who love their jobs genuinely enjoy what they do and feel energized by their work. This goes beyond momentary satisfaction and reflects a deeper emotional connection to the work.

The second is commitment to the organization. Loving your job involves feeling attached to the organization you work for, believing that its problems are your problems and finding meaning in your role within it.

The third is connection with others at work. This does not mean oversharing or blurring professional boundaries. Rather, it reflects feeling emotionally connected to the people or community at work. This sense of trust and belonging makes work feel personally significant.

Many employees are satisfied with their jobs without feeling emotionally connected to them . Others feel highly engaged without experiencing their work as deeply meaningful. Still others may love the work they do but feel little attachment to the organization or the people around them.

Love of the job is different. It reflects a rare alignment, where enthusiasm, commitment and connection come together at once.

Why love of the job can be powerful

When these elements converge, love of the job can function as a powerful psychological resource.

In our research, love of the job was associated with outcomes above and beyond job satisfaction and work engagement. Employees who loved their jobs reported higher psychological well-being and remained more involved in their work.

For organizations, this distinction is important. Love of the job is not another label for motivation or engagement, but reflects a deeper form of attachment that helps explain why some employees remain invested even when work becomes demanding.

Under supportive conditions, loving one's job can contribute to both individual well-being and sustained performance.

When love becomes a vulnerability

There are some possible drawbacks. While we didn't find evidence that love of the job directly causes burnout, overwork or exploitation, past research suggests that having a deep attachment to work can create vulnerability when organizational conditions are poor.

Employees who love their jobs often feel a strong sense of responsibility for their work and their organization. In supportive environments, this can be a strength ; in unsupportive ones, it may make it harder to step back, set limits or recognize when demands have become unreasonable.

In other words, love of the job may heighten employees' exposure to the effects of poor management .

This is especially relevant in organizations that encourage employees to bring their "whole selves" to work or frame work as a calling . When strong emotional attachment is celebrated without realistic workloads, fair compensation or respect for boundaries, devotion can turn into obligation.

A paradox for organizations

These findings from our research point to a paradox. In our studies, employees who reported a higher love of their job were more likely to go above and beyond their formal roles. More broadly, organizations tend to value employees who care deeply about their work, seeing them as more invested and willing to contribute.

But encouraging love of the job without protecting those who experience it can undermine the very outcomes organizations value. Love cannot be manufactured, demanded or treated as a performance metric. It also cannot be substituted for sound management practices.

Supporting love of the job means creating conditions where enjoyment, commitment, and connection can develop organically through meaningful work, supportive leadership and healthy job design . Love of the job does not replace good management; it depends on it.

Decades of research on job design, leadership, and employee well-being show that sustained positive attachment to work requires clear expectations, manageable demands and psychological safety. Love cannot compensate for chronic overload, unclear roles or lack of support.

Loving your job can be fulfilling when that love is freely experienced under healthy conditions. But when love is expected or leveraged in place of good management, it can become a source of strain rather than strength.

Nick Turner receives research funding from Cenovus Energy Inc., Haskayne School of Business's Future Fund, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

Julian Barling receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Borden Chair of Leadership.

Kaylee Somerville receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada (SSHRC).

Zhanna Lyubykh receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).