Your job is to enjoy your life
I've had to speak quite sternly to a couple of dear friends today and explain to them that they're working too hard, need to lighten up and start enjoying their lives. My friends love me.
I often work with artists and creative people who are afraid of doing their real work. Me too. It's really hard.
We live in a society where the way to get anything done or be successful or even earn any money is to "crush it". Action is the magic word. Show some grit! You snooze you lose. All of which, in my humble opinion (and actually long experience) are untrue. The people telling you these things usually have some interest in you working hard (either directly for them, or indirectly by affirming their own overwork).
We are creative beings. That's what we do. We can't help it. When we allow it to happen, stuff flows out of us easily and the exhange of value is obvious - tokens of appreciation come flooding in. When we get picky about what sorts of tokens of appreciation or we get distracted by the hard-work-fairies, it all gets much harder and we think the solution is to crush it even more, but it's not. The solution is counter-intuitive in our world, but it's to give, give something useful and beneficial to your fellows. Don't dream up a company that replaces Bodega's with vending machines. That helps no-one. Dream up a way of helping people, in the way that they're actually asking you to help right now, and then get on with it. Appreciation (including bucks, bitcoin and STEEM) will be yours.
Both my friends are artists, worried that they can't possibly carry on doing the amazing creative work that they're doing and still earn a living. I've seen both of their work. Both of them fill me with joy and excitement. Both of them have shown me that truly anything in this world is possible. Both of them have helped me and many others with their work. I'm proud to know them.
I tell them both, regularly "Your job is to enjoy your life, just do your job."
This is the kind of sentiment to which I think 'it would be nice if it were actually true'. Unfortunately the reality is that just finding ways to be help people and following your creative passions will not guarantee that you'll earn enough to pay the bills if you're already 'locked in' to the rent/ family trap.
However, I certainly agree that one shouldn't take work too seriously - I personally regard myself as coming to the end of a 16 year break from life, i.e. I'm quitting a 16 year career in teaching at the end of this year 'cos I've just had enough of it.
Back to my first point - after 16 years of a proper job and a big fat wad of cash in the bank, I can now follow your advice and earn money by doing pretty much what I want, which is just write about shit that interests me, but that, even with the @curie upvote trail on my side ain't gonna being me home $3000 every month!
heh! well it takes all sorts to make a world :) All I can say is it works for me and I see it working for many others around me. You go your way, I'll go mine.
I've been in lots of those traps but there are also lots of ways out of them.
Love & peace and good luck in your new adventure. I hope you stick around here because I can totally see you bringing in £3k a month here if you want to.
And it'll work for me too, all I'd like us to realise is that this cannot be generalised to anything like the majority of people in the world, at least not under the present system. But basically, we're lucky, and I'd just like more people to acknowledge this!
I forgot to say, nice photo above btw.
Generally it is a good idea to enjoy life, however it seems that your friends are really worried that they can't possibly carry on doing their creative work. There are a lot of creative people out who work as taxi drivers and in fish and ship shops... its is a real sorrow.
https://steemit.com/esperanto/@johano/the-man-behind-the-counter-la-homo-malanta-la-vendejotablo
Yes, sir! I will start enjoying my life right now! Just no more stern looks. I'm sensitive, you know. ;-)
Seriously, though, I really needed the reminder that it's possible to live that way. I get discouraged and forget.
but that's my friendly face, you should see me when I'm really stern and serious! :D
Leave discouragement in the closet please!
Love your philosophy. Thanks for sharing.
I am with you on this one :)
wonderful. love that @lloyddavis. missed you popping up in my feed recently. you all good?
yes, thank you :) Just had a mad trip to DC over the weekend which disrupted my precious writing routine!
You are on point
I am with you.
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As a young man I enjoyed my life and pursed my art.
Now I'll never be able to retire!
(lol actually I agree with you. We only get one life. Enjoy it!)