We hit The Badlands, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, The Grand Tetons & Boulder, CO. While the trip was good for many reasons, one of the biggest takeaways was that there is so much more to life than working. There's so much to do and see, and only so much time to soak in all the views and experiences. And yet, we (as a society) chose to prioritize and even worship a hectic, heavy work schedule. Here's my take on that:
VS.
Our parents emphasized the importance of hard work, telling
us nothing good could be achieved without its practice. Our teachers went on to
do the same. So did everyone else. “A dream doesn’t become reality through
magic;” they said. “It takes sweat, determination and hard work.”
While there is validity in working to make certain goals come
to life, work has become an overwhelmingly dominant part of human existence;
it’s so dominant, in fact, that it leaves no time for other aspects required to
live happily and healthily.
The United States is top amongst the culprit nations, as the
average workweek is 46.7 hours (or 49 hours for salaried workers). That means,
on a typical day, someone who marches off at 8a.m. (and has a lunch break)
won’t leave work until around 6p.m. That’s the entire day. Dinner, more work
from home and off to bed – that’s all this schedule leaves time for.
The average vacation time given to United States salaried
employees is only about ten days, or two workweeks. With fifty-two weeks in
each year, people are essentially working all the time.
In many of these cases, the duties performed have nothing to
do with personal dreams. It’s a matter of bringing home a paycheck. Work to pay
the bills. Work to afford that house. Work to afford this. Work to afford that.
It’s all about acquiring things; it has nothing to do with personal aspirations
or achieving happiness.
In fact, only 13 percent of people worldwide enjoyed going
to work as of 2013. And yet, we continue to do what we do. We continue to
choose fat wallets over daily contentment. Not only that, but we teach our
children that a “good job” is one that – regardless of personal satisfaction –
provides hefty wages. They will undoubtedly grow up to share the same, skewed
mentality.
We’re blind to the true meaning of life. We’re blind to what
really matters, what really holds value when all is said and done. We’re choosing
to work, work, work and become stressed, stressed, stressed (and praise those
who are doing the same) in order to buy that car or that hot tub or that cool,
new phone. We are flat out damning our health and wellness in order to afford
more material possessions.
Could we put a price on health – mental or physical? These
two components, the parts that make up who we are, are negatively impacted as
we overwork. They crumble and fall apart. And yet, we seem to believe our
health is worth less than the neat, unnecessary gadgets we can hold in our
palms.
What’s the price of time spent with loved ones? This aspect
of life, the one that elders have long told us to cherish, to prioritize, has
fallen by the wayside, replaced with overtime and a few extra bucks at the end
of the week.
What’s the price of adequate rest? Humans need to recharge
in order to be happy and healthy. And yet…
We go to work and spend our weeks behind our desks – bogged
down by unhappiness. We flip the middle finger to the relaxing, the balanced,
those who are “taking it easy.” They’re not doing their duty. “Lazy” is what we
dub those who choose not to participate in the 50-hour workweek trend. Those
who merely cover their financial bases and live simply – they’re the ones going
about it wrong. Right?
We need to take a step back and consider the paradox in
working long hours. It’s a practice – no, a lifestyle – that shouldn’t be
applauded. Don’t we see that, in the end, we leave no time for the stuff we
work so hard to afford? We end up too tired to appreciate our lovely home, our
contemporary top-of-the-line furniture, our humongous television. More
importantly, we leave no time for loved ones.
But we have a choice.
We can opt for cheaper models, fewer toys, fewer belongings
overall. We needn’t replace our cars, our wardrobes, our furnishings simply
because we tire of the old. We may want to, but we don’t need to. We’re fueled
by the desire to have the best, nicest things. By the time we’ve worked enough
to afford it all, we’re burnt out.
We can do away with daily misery and work less; we can seek
lower paying jobs that we actually find enjoyable. We could fill our time with
good company, with sufficient rest, with necessary recharging of body and mind.
If we would only alter our work patterns, or deeper yet, if
we would stop our worship of material possessions (realizing they should not
take priority over love, rest and health), we’d be healthier and happier. Contrary
to what people seem to believe, working a million hours for a million dollars
but leaving no time to spend it and cutting out anyone we might spend it with–
that’s not happy or healthy.
This post originally appeared on Thought Catalog.
This post originally appeared on Thought Catalog.
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