Merriam-Webster defines work as: “an activity in which one exerts strength or faculties to do or perform something.” Exerting strength or faculties doesn’t sound so bad, does it?
Every day, people complain about “work”. They say things like, “I don’t want to do that; it would be too much like work.”
So, why do we think “exerting strength or faculties” so bad? Why is it such a terrible thing to use your mind, your body, and your resources to perform something? Do our minds, bodies and resources even exist for any reason other than “performing something?”
I searched the Internet for “popular life goals” and found many lists of common goals that people have for their lives. One was very comprehensive: http://www.ranker.com/list/most-important-life-goals-list/samantha-dillinger
What We Really Want
Wow, what an ambitious bunch of people we are! We really want the best for ourselves and everyone in the world.
According to the ranker.com list, we want to start a non-profit, care for others, help the needy, bring peace to the world, be giving, raise wonderful children and on and on. Most of all, we want to be the best possible people we can be. We want to be happy, enjoy life, learn new languages, be healthy, grow intellectually, be true to ourselves, and appreciate beauty.
Money shows up on the list, but it’s a needle in a haystack. Also noteworthy is that “doing nothing” never shows up on any of the lists.
All of the the things we say we want require us to exert our strength or faculties to achieve them. Which, back to the Merriam-Webster definition, is work.
So why does work have such a negative connotation. The reason you don’t like work because too much of it is done to achieve things we don’t care about.
Working a Job You Don’t Like
Working a job you don’t like is what 80% of Americans do five days a week for over 40 hours. It’s the primary activity that we attach the term “work” to. No wonder we think “work” is such a bad thing.
Stop thinking of work as something you “MUST DO.” Redefine work as: “how you get whatever you want.”
Then look at all the things you are “working on” that you don’t care about and redefine it as: “wasting your life.”
Write down three things you want and what it will take to get them. Then bask in the wonderfulness of work, knowing it’s the exact thing that will get you whatever you want.
Photo by Christian Lue on Unsplash
The Blog of Jeff Steinmann 