They may well get that feeling outside of work. Maybe they like making music but couldn't make a living as a musician. Maybe they're writing a novel. Whatever it is. Most of the things most people in the world enjoy doing are not the things they are made to do for their job.
Honestly I think it is a bit sad that you cannot imagine that a person would prefer to do something other than work, and that the alternative must be to find other work to do. I have other things that I enjoy that are not my job, such as my family and my hobbies. Maybe look into one day finding something you enjoy outside of work.
Not everyone works for money. In fact most people I personally know (no, I'm not sure that's a good representation) don't. What is quite common though among large groups of people is that they get extremely bored and lonely without their jobs. It is frightening to talk with people and find out that they would have nothing at all to do if they would not have their jobs; their hobbies (if they have them) don't give them enough satisfaction to do them longer than a few hours a week.
I don't have to work but I find myself working more as I enjoy it even though I have hobbies to keep me busy.
Yeah, it's called a personal life. Work is basically that thing I do to make the stuff I do in my personal life possible or more comfortable. Or simply not starve. Would I rather have some sort of enjoyment in the work I do? Yeah, but the truth is I can be happy enough doing janitorial work or working retail so long as the work environment and pay is good enough. It is just a job, after all, even when the pay is good or it takes studying. While a few folks might hit the work/job lottery and get something they actually enjoy, I think work is just a job for most folks. It isn't cynical or jaded. It simply is.
Would I work if I won a lottery or if I didn't need money? Nope. Definitely not. I might have a few projects that look kinda like work if lottery-rich, but the truth is I'd just hire folks to do most of it for me. I'd mostly want to travel and make artwork and try out different sorts of hobbies. I'd work on getting weird and eccentric.
That’s totally backwards. Most people do their jobs because it pays the bills. Most people don’t have careers, with some glorious internal narrative in which they’re the protagonist. They have jobs. If they’re lucky or good spirited, they’ll find satisfaction or even enjoyment in their work. But they work because it gives them the means to get what they need and do at least some of what they really want to do.
Do you think that’s true for more than a small minority of people?
The author isn’t incredulous that anyone could find joy in doing something. Of course some people love their work. The author is contending that a lot of people don’t, but feel like they have to pretend that they do for cultural reasons.
There is nothing wrong with working and liking your work. I have a passion for music and coding, working all day. Problem is that most people need to work for another reason; $$$ instead of passion, to avoid ending up in the streets. That's more like slavery.
Enjoy life outside of work? Look, I enjoy my work and it's pretty meaningful work that affects people in real ways.
But I work to live, not live to work. My job is a means to an end, that end being to have a fulfilling life that doesn't revolve around what I do for a living.
Because of that, I find the quest to climb the corporate ladder has lost it's appeal. I'm cool staying at my current, well-paying, work from home job until I retire. I don't want to be running a company, I want to be running my life.
If your working time is spent doing something you don't really enjoy that sucks, obviously. It'd be great if we could all spend our lives doing creative, enjoyable things. Realistically though, if your work facilitates a happy life outside of your job then it could still be well be worth it - my parents have led full, happy lives (or so they tell me) raising their kids, doing their hobbies, seeing their friends, and yet they worked jobs that weren't that they both claim weren't much fun, and I'm certain that neither of them look back with any regrets.
The expectation that you can carve out a lifestyle where everything is worthwhile is unrealistic, and while a few outliers might actually achieve it, most people aren't going manage to get anything like that. Don't tell people that they're wasting their life because they fail to pass a ludicrously high bar. A life spent doing fulfilling things is not a waste even if it also includes lots of things that suck.
tl;dr Grow up, take responsibility for yourself, and make sure that on balance, after you're dead, you've done more good stuff than bad, even if your job falls in to the 'bad' category.
You haven't found a fulfilling purpose outside of a job then. There was a period in my life where I didn't need to work for a year. I spent it reading books, supporting my friends, exploring my city on bike, learning an instrument, and creating art (which I would show at monthly events). It was way more fulfilling than any job I've had.
Your experience may be different, but I know surprisingly many such people in my circles. Usually engineers, doctors and other white-collar workers, who got to the point where their job is more satisfying than stressful. They don't do it for the money, but to socialize and to have a purpose in life.
But likewise you should also realize that working long hours or "all the time" to some people is not really always work. I've had people do a "tisk tisk" he is working and I say "I like what I am doing so don't feel bad for me". I'm sure I'm not the only person who is like this either. For one person traveling on business might be something they hate and another something that they get great joy from.
Anyway they might not be really suffering that much. [1] (I speak from my own point of view and assume that others may feel the same way.)
[1] Also they could be escaping something else that is much less desirable perhaps. "Help me clean the house" as one example!
I think what we're talking about here is having a sense of community or at least human to human interaction. I can think of so many ways to get that without the obligations that come from having a job.
I generally enjoy my job but that is far from the main reason I do it. If money was not an issue, there are so many other things in life I would enjoy doing far more not to mention enjoying the general freedom that comes from not needing to work.
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