for the love of work
Wednesday, October 12, 2011 at 04:29AM Confession: sometimes, my partner and I go to social events and whisper to each other on our way out, "I wish I had just stayed home to work." You'd think this was an attack on the company we keep, but it's just our shared love of work.
Yes, I need to work on my work-life balance, but I also think there is great value in always thinking of ways to improve. (This is also why I've been MIA for the past month or two. Sorry. I'm starting to see light at the proverbial end of the tunnel, and I've got tons of lessons learned to share with you.) :-)
Put another way, my friend, Peter, and I were recently talking about happiness, and he said his happiness stemmed from having self-respect. I agreed that people who didn't respect or like themselves would have a tough time feeling happy, but upon mulling it over a bit more, I decided peace for me comes from having self-respect, but happiness requires a bit more.
My happiness comes in two primary ways: connecting with someone in a meaningful way or doing work that I feel contributes to society. Which brings us back to work.
People complain about work, avoid it and generally don't have a very positive view of it. But work can also be seen as an opportunity to put your skills, passion and experience to use. If you're a musician or an artist, it's your duty to share your talent with others. If you're a problem solver, a whiz with languages or a natural educator, you can help people build bridges, further understanding and improve their quality of life.
Whatever your passion and ability, work for me is the expression of that potential. It's the kinetic, put to use. And that is what makes me feel alive-- when I am creating or doing something that can improve life for even one person.
What greater gift is there? For me, it's the opportunity to put all of my varied experiences to use to help others. And the exhaustion felt at the end of a long day of serving others makes me feel useful and that my life is purposeful. And that, to me, is happiness.
Reader Comments