A wise man once said:
If you do what you love for a living, you will never work a day in your life.
Today, many people disagree with this line of thinking, because they believe once something becomes work – it’s just work, no matter what it is.
But then should the opposite advice prove better? If I find something I hate and do it for a living, will that make me love it more over time?
I highly doubt that.
A Cog in the Wheel
When I worked at Xerox Business Services I had a standard 40-hour week. To be more specific, I put in 38.5 hours of work, when my lunch break was excluded.
And you know what?
From the first to the last day I worked there, every moment felt like torture. Just one week after landing my job with the company, I started to job hunt again and continued to do so for the remaining two years I spent with them.
When I finally found the opportunity to leave, I told the HR Director that the only difference between working at Xerox and working on a plantation in the 1700s was central air conditioning.
It was a private conversation in which she had encouraged me to be as bluntly honest as possible, and I had handed it to her.
Believe it or not, she only smiled. “You’re not the first person to tell me that,” she admitted.
Other Cogs in the Machine
But I already knew I wasn’t the only one dissatisfied with my job. The best worker on our team often confessed that every day he spent working as an analyst, it was the more he felt his brain cells disappearing.
He loved accounting, and as close as taxes came to that, it just wasn’t enough for him. He wasn’t doing what he loved.
Fast-forward to more than a year later and both of us have put the company behind us. He now enjoys working somewhere else and is getting a degree in accounting; and I enjoy working for myself and with clients.
Building my Own Machine
In fact, I’ve had weeks of putting in 70 hours of work – voluntarily.
What do I do with all that time? I help start-ups work on their payroll and budgeting to submit to investors. I handle social media pages, create a few ad campaigns, consult with authors, and provide content for a few websites. And most importantly, I manage my blogs.
Throughout all this, I still find time to work out, take short hiking trips, eat out, play video games, visit with family and friends, and even get my hair done.
How did I do it? Who knows?
I’ve always had the uncanny ability to put extra hours in a day.
It’s been my super-power since I hit puberty.
But when people see how many hours I work and hear the tallied number, they are often concerned. Of course, I’m often tired. That I openly admit. But how could I not be stressed? Unhappy, even? At least, not where work is concerned.
Doing What I Love
The answer is simple: I do what I love for a living, so I never work a day in my life. In fact, I would put in another 10 hours – happily – if I could have found anymore work to do. But alas, I often do not.
Maybe this coming week will be another 70 hours or a 60. But whatever the count, I know I will enjoy every second I spend tweeting, photo-shopping, marketing, writing, designing, budgeting, and anything else my clients send my way.
What will you be working on this week? If it’s not something you love, then perhaps it’s time to consider a new career path. It’s never too late to go back to school, and never too late to live the life you’ve always dreamed.
As long as what you love coincides with something you’re also good at – take a chance, make the effort, create a change. You’ll be happy you did.
Originally published February 8, 2016 on Alexis Chateau.
I agree. It does happen that when you’re doing what you love, the stress gets to you but in the end, no matter how tough the circumstances, you have fun.
Yes, work will always be stressful – most jobs anyway – so it’s important to find one we can still enjoy.
I am someone who has left “a job” to return to school to “work” at what I love. I realized that I couldn’t tell my children to pursue their dreams if I didn’t pursue mine. My husband is backing me all the way. Great post!
That’s great that you decided to lead by example. What field do you want to work in?
I am studying to be a Library Tech. I used to have a casual position at our local library, but left it for a full-time desk job (don’t regret doing it, but very glad to be going back).
That’s great. I take it you’re a book lover.
Yep…though I never get to read as much as I like. 😆
What’s stopping you?
I need to find more time. Working on it. 😆
That happens. I had to just put my foot down and carve out the time. I read before bed now.
Good advice.
Maybe someday, but I’ve got to study, which is the life I’m loving to live.
Studying is important, as long as you choose the field you want over the one you think you’ll need; or find a good compromise between both.
What a great peice. I really do struggle with how to push through the minutia of a standard job, but I hope one day to be able to love what I do as much as you do.
Sometimes a less demanding job can provide you with the time, space, and intellectual freedom to pursue the things you really want to do.
That is true, we’ll see if I can find that job to be able to do that.
I hope you do 🙂
Hi Alexis. Firstly, please allow me to say something unrelated to this specific post – Thank you so much for following my blog. I really appreciate it. It’s an honor. Your blog is amazing (the College one, too, even if I’m maybe too old for it) and I truly admire you and your writing. Amazing talent. I’m jealous 😄
I agree with work not being work when you do what you love, and vice versa, right? I love what I do, what I’m trained for – Finance/Accounting, even Taxes and Financial Analysis. However, being in Finance and Admin, the admin part of the job isn’t something I like (at all). Then there’s the stress and if the boss isn’t a good manager, it’s just plain awful. I used to be more courageous and have gone and done my own thing before. Ten years older and I seem to choose stability over satisfaction, at the same time sacrificing happiness and overall well-being. You are fortunate indeed. Perhaps I’ll get lucky when I become brave. 😊 Thanks for the reminder. Great post.
Hello Anne. You’re absolutely welcome. I love looking for new blogs to follow to beef up my feed, and I’m glad I found your blog as well.
I think I mentioned in the post that I also worked in payroll and taxes. I’m a CPP if you can trust the title at the end of my legal name, but I never liked the field much.
Your scenario though further reminds me that even though we love a field, we may hate our positions, and even the people we work with can make it unenjoyable. I hope you find a better way to find satisfaction soon, without sacrificing too much stability.
I hope I don’t disappoint you too much. I don’t use sub-headings 😄 I’ll work on that. 😊
Payroll isn’t a favorite of mine as well although I do end up doing some. Having those letters is a wonderful thing. 😊 I’d like to get my CFA as I enjoy taking things apart and analyzing for possible a merger and acquisition. I heard it’s a tough one.
I’m working on my situation. I’m still debating whether I should send him the letter I have in my head, which is 90% complimentary but with the 10% telling him there is a need to re-look at his management skill.
I’m really looking forward to hours of enjoyment reading your works and learning.
I believe in doing what I love… I have been teaching for past17 years and lived every day of it…. Now my dogs are old and need me… So I have retired voluntarily for a few years… Because taking care of them is another thing that I love…. Now it’s them, my writing, cooking, gym and enjoying life
That’s amazing. I’m actually thinking of getting into teaching myself in my latter years. Everyone says that’s my calling, but we’ll see.
Amen!
Thanks for that post I loved it.
The most horrible thing is that people tell me what I am doing is not working because I like it.
Well, I earn my money with it, and I like it and I spend hours trying to do it right and what I get is: no respect. Because I like it.
I just hate that attitude. If I did something I didn’t like and had to push myself to do everyday (which I could and which I still have to do sometimes) people would respect it more. Pursuiting happiness seems to be something you have to be ashamed of these days.. that makes me very sad.
You’re right. No one wants to be the starving artist anymore. Everyone wants the glamorous celebrity idea of success. Do what you love, and ignore the people who tell you otherwise. When it comes to your career, you are only accountable to yourself.
Will never give up the pursuit of happiness, doing what I love. Hope to one day live that dream! Thanks for the reminder!
You’re welcome, Diana! All the best on that journey, and thanks so much for dropping by and reading.
I always believed that spending the day, looking a the clock, hoping time to fly by is like wishing for a quick death. I try to avoid spending days like that. Time is precious and I don’t want to spend my day hoping to quickly speed closer to death. Happy to see you feel the same way.
I feel that way now that I love my work. Before, I was one of those, watching the clock tick by, dying to go home.
Great you’re making the life you want, I’m so glad it’s going well!
I used to feel time just flew and my brain was fully engaged at work, but the longer I worked the job the less it happened, until I was dreading going to work. Time to leave. Through thrift and good fortune we’d saved enough to just go, so we did.
A year later I can’t imagine ever going back to a full time ‘career’ job working for somebody else. (Never say never.) Just roaming the world at the moment, and infinitely happier and more myself. In future I envisage part time job(s), writing, and possibly one day starting a business. We’ve got practiced at living on little, so don’t have pressure to earn a lot. (Very aware we’re lucky to be able to earn enough for a simple life easily. So many people struggle to meet their basic needs through no fault of their own.)
That’s great Kirstie. You totally understand my position then.
I’m going back to a part time job in a month or so as well, but definitely not a corporate job, and I have permission to work on my blog while there so that’s awesome.
It’s important to find the right balance between financial success and personal happiness in life. I’m glad you have, too!