Member-only story
How I make my work work for me
…and how you can too!
“Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life” — we’ve all heard the saying.
I disagree with this statement for three important reasons. First, it implies that ‘work’ is something negative, an unenjoyable purgatory to be suffered through. Personally, I believe that whether you find your ‘work’ grueling or enjoyable depends heavily on your mindset. Second, it implies that work is only enjoyable or fulfilling if it’s related to your passion. However, several people enjoy their work even if their passion lies elsewhere. Third, and most importantly, it restricts the meaning of ‘work’ to your ‘job’. Work does not have to be related to your career. It can simply mean cleaning your house, which is an item on the to-do list that lives quite independently of your career.
For me, ‘work’ is anything that gives me fulfillment. When I am immersed completely and unable to think of anything else, I call it ‘work’. When I work, I get a sense of fulfillment without which I feel irritated and eager for the slump to be over.
I’ve attempted to reflect on the factors that lead to post-work fulfillment so that I (and hopefully you) can replicate them with intention. Over the course of this exercise and after a bit of reading, I realized that many factors that contribute to a sense of…
