In this monologue, David Mitchell takes aim at the modern overuse of the word "passion" — particularly in job advertisements and corporate culture. He argues that genuine passion is an intense, overwhelming emotion, and that claiming to be passionate about selling sofas, answering phones, or working in retail is absurd hyperbole. With dry wit and sardonic precision, he dissects the way businesses use the word to demand false enthusiasm from employees and job applicants, noting that the real motivation for most workers is simply survival and paying the bills. He also skewers the stock photography used in such adverts — featuring "suspiciously spot-on gender and ethnic diversity" — and laments that he simply cannot shake off his "damnable sense of perspective."
