Work to Live or Live to Work?

The Irish Gal · February 2012

Following on from the post about long work hours... which ethos do you think you live by?

For us it is definitely work to live - work as a means to an end rather than being the reason to live...

dulcemariamar1 · February 2012

I work to live. I have never been the type of person who had to have a career. I have had several jobs over the years, and I have been happy with all of them.

kelly321 · February 2012

I actually took a really interesting class on this during the senior year of my BA. The 4 categories in the main book we used (by Gilbert Meilaender) were:

1. Work as co-creation (not just for artistic professions)

2. Work as vocation

3. Work as dignified but irksome

4. Work as necessary for leisure

I have a really hard time sticking to one category and find myself thinking of my work in all four categories at different times.

PittPurple · February 2012

I don't hate my job, but I'm not ambitious and wouldn't miss it if I didn't work for a while. Actually, neither DH or I are particularly ambitious but since we have to work, we've figured out a way to work at jobs we don't hate and then do lots of fun stuff outside of work. So I guess I'm somewhere between 3-4 of Kelly's list.

MintChocoChip · February 2012

I work to live for sure. Possibly because I've never had a job that I've loved. I've never gotten pleasure from a job like I do from my volunteer work. Hmm, maybe I should be working for a NPO.

myblueangel19 · February 2012

I work to live. I need a job that feels meaningful though in order to thrive. I get a much more fulfilling time of being a nanny than I did as a receptionist or secretary because I feel like I am directly making a difference to someone's life. But then again, I can get that feeling in my general relationship with colleagues and clients.

Avion22 · February 2012

"Live to work" sounds so horrible, but it's more accurate than "work to live." I'm in the unbelievably lucky position that I absolutely love my job and am personally driven to do well at it. I'm fortunate that it pays enough to live comfortably, but if all of the sudden I found out I wasn't going to get paid at all, I would still do everything possible to stay in my current job.

VABeach08 · February 2012

Somewhere in between, I think. I like my job and I'm not a homebody (I go stir-crazy if I stay in my house too much... totally opposite of my H, interestingly enough).

If I were magically independently wealthy, I imagine I could find things other than my job to fulfill me-- travel and school (learning for learning's sake school) come to mind.

In the unlikely event that magic $ doesn't fall out of sky, I'm cool with the status quo. I like working generally and I specifically dig my career field.

Anasara · February 2012

Totally work to live!

ukyankee · February 2012

I love my job and might even choose to do it if I won the lottery, but I honestly have turned down extra stipended work to have time at home with dog and DH.

Work to Live or Live to Work?

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