You really don't need to be a passionate programmer. However, passion will bring you much further when you have to work on something that's boring, tedious, or has no real end in sight.
For example, when I was in grad school my passion for the subject actually nose-dived as the quantity of tedium and endless iteration increased. It wasn't passion that carried me anywhere then. It was simple determination.
Passionate person's approach: > I'm looking for something I don't know. > This framework I read on HN looks cool. I have a busy day, but let me put aside my boring work and try this new framework > Let me create a NN in my own way -just for fun. I know libraries exist, but I still want to do it my way. > I'm bored - let me check HN (I don't remember that I checked it 30 mins back) > I wonder that I work so long and hard, but I don't achieve anything concrete (Scattered energies) > I reached goal XYZ because I was trying this and that. And then the dots connected and I had this eureka moment. And now I have 10K users (accidentally)
Persistence approach: > This is the goal I want to reach (The goal could be learning a new thing) > This is the plan that I need to follow. Or experiment with another plan if this doesn't work. > Don't reinvent the wheel, use the resources available (exception: re-inventing was a part of the goal) > I need to read HN twice a day and see if something I can add to my learning/todo-list. > I need to stay disciplined even if I don't like it (Focused) > I reached goal XYZ because I planned and strategized for acquiring 10K users.
Combination of both is necessary. Throughout my career, I have seen persistent people achieve more often. However, if passionate people achieve something it is significantly larger win (amidst very low probabilities)