Summary: A decade-long study of snowsport instructors finds that swapping a conventional nine-to-five job for a career driven by passion can bring deep fulfillment and personal growth, but it also requires significant sacrifices. Participants described gains in meaning and capability alongside ongoing mental, financial, and physical challenges associated with seasonal work and a life on the move.
Unlike lifestyle-driven digital nomads who often optimize for more leisure, these instructors pursued meaningful work and skill development, frequently earning just enough to sustain their chosen way of life. As more workers seek purpose at work, the study highlights the fragile balance between freedom, fulfillment, and stability.
Key Facts:
- Personal growth: Instructors reported increased fulfillment, stronger skills, and a clearer sense of purpose.
- Hidden costs: Many faced unstable income, mental fatigue, and difficult physical conditions tied to seasonal employment.
- Workforce shift: The findings reflect a broader trend of workers preferring purposeful roles over strictly higher pay.
Source: RMIT
A 10-year study of snowsport instructors reveals what it means to pursue work that prioritizes enjoyment and personal development over traditional career metrics.
As more people move away from conventional nine-to-five schedules toward flexible or location-independent arrangements, the researchers followed those who left standard office roles to work as snowsport instructors. The study—published in the International Journal of Research in Marketing—shows that turning a hobby like skiing into a full-time pursuit can be deeply rewarding but also financially and physically demanding.
Study co-author Dr Marian Makkar of RMIT University says participants most often left their conventional roles because they wanted to escape repetitive daily routines and find more meaningful work.
“Leaving the daily grind in search of a more meaningful career was the main motivation, but it came with real sacrifices,” said Makkar, a senior lecturer in marketing. “We recorded stories of financial strain, mental fatigue, and physical hardship, yet most participants reported substantial personal growth and satisfaction.”
The ethnographic study tracked snowsport instructors in New Zealand, Japan, Canada, and other locations. Many moved from one winter season to the next with little or no summer break, traveling with most of their belongings in one or two bags and carrying the gear they needed to teach and work.
Earnings were often modest—just enough to support the lifestyle—which set these instructors apart from digital nomads. While both groups sought to escape the ordinary, digital nomads commonly emphasize optimizing time for leisure, whereas snowsport instructors prioritize meaningful work and skill development linked to their passion.
Makkar notes this reflects a broader shift in the workforce, where employees are increasingly willing to demand flexibility or pursue roles that provide a sense of purpose. Employers that fail to adapt risk losing talented staff or facing declines in productivity.
Earlier research indicates that remote work can raise employee well-being significantly, yet until now little attention had been paid to people who turn their search for meaning—what researchers call eudaimonia—into a career. These instructors chase not just happiness but accomplishment, virtue, and long-term life satisfaction through hard work and skill-building.
Not every instructor remained on this path indefinitely. Some eventually returned to more conventional employment after concluding they had learned what they wanted from the lifestyle or found it unsustainable because of precarious contracts, low pay, and reliance on weather conditions. Others transitioned into more stable roles while preserving elements of the snow lifestyle, working seasonally or combining diverse income streams.
One participant recalled a university management lecture that contrasted climbing the corporate ladder with living a life centered on skiing: rather than earning a high salary and taking a single annual ski trip, the participant chose daily access to the mountains while maintaining basic financial security—an arrangement they found sufficient for their needs.
Makkar suggests the study’s insights are applicable beyond snowsports, to other non-traditional careers such as social media influencers. Both start with a passion and skill, then encounter the demands and pressures of turning that passion into sustained work.
About this psychology research news
Author: RMIT External Affairs and Media
Source: RMIT
Contact: RMIT External Affairs and Media – RMIT
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access. “Eudaimonic consumption careers” by Marian Makkar et al., International Journal of Research in Marketing. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2025.03.007
Abstract
Eudaimonic consumption careers
Many consumers search the marketplace for meaning and happiness, while others seek transformative experiences to escape the tedium of everyday life. Typically these experiences are temporary, and people return to their regular routines after the experience ends.
Little is known about those who permanently escape conventional life by turning their pursuit of deeper meaning (eudaimonia) into a career. We call this phenomenon eudaimonic consumption careers (ECCs).
In a 10.5-year ethnographic study of snowsport instructors across Canada and New Zealand, we map the stages and experiences of ECCs over time. We identify the integrative triggers that lead people to start such careers, the transition and capability-development phases required to manage career demands, and the disintegrative triggers that prompt exits.
This research contributes to literature on extraordinary consumption, consumer work, serious leisure, and critiques of modern work and life. It highlights an overlooked category of careers formed through consumption and offers guidance for employers and organizations on how to support people pursuing meaningful, service-oriented roles that promise fulfillment, personal growth, and a stronger sense of life purpose.