Written by: Jesse Herman
Work is a drag for most of us Americans fortunate enough to have a job. People get so fed up with working for someone else that they go start their owns businesses, dealing with never-ending hassles because of it. This is why it is vitally important you find something you are good at and enjoy, no matter if you have a boss or not. If you are working long hours and are doing a half-brained job because it sucks, self-loathing ensues.
It is the cultural education in America that is setting people up for jobs that are not rewarding. As a society materialistic desires are needed to keep the blood flowing but at great cost. Many people find themselves working endless hours doing monkey-stuff and at the end of the day don’t have much to show for it.
Work can also be incredibly rewarding if your priorities are in order. Success in monetary terms and notoriety can help but without balance other area’s of your life will fall apart. In my opinion if you focus on your professional and private life with equally great care and enthusiasm, happiness will be the destiny others will wish they had pursued. Making the right choices in you personal life is key too. Don’t marry someone who wants a bunch of money if you don’t want to work the long hours to make it happen. Make sure he or she is not a selfish and dependent person. If you are the selfish or dependent person, please stop because you are not helping your spouse do a good job at work. Whatever your job is, it does not have to suck. If you hate it than your goal should be to find a better rather than staying in your protective, empty box.
Postponing Happiness for Work
Many people tell themselves they will have fun at a later date, after they’ve hoarded in a chunk of change and/or saved up for retirement. As a result, they miss key moments with their family as their children grow older. A lack of parenting in the home can lead to serious issues with children, so just because you are making money the odds of happiness in life for your kids is not increasing.
Working from Home
Others have found it is difficult to work from home. Mixing family and work can be frustrating and distracting. If you are constantly stressed about work at home it will spill onto other people. So unless you have a big house, good lock and private office it is probably best to find a nearby office to set up shop.
Work and Depression According to EurekAlert:
Working too much is correlated with 2-fold increase in likelihood of depression.
The odds of a major depressive episode are more than double for those working 11 or more hours a day compared to those working seven to eight hours a day, according to a report is published in the Jan. 25 issue of the online journal PLoS ONE.
The authors, led by Marianna Virtanen of the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and University College London, followed about 2000 middle aged British civil servants and found a robust association between overtime work and depression. This correlation was not affected when the analysis was adjusted for various possible confounders, including socio-demographics, lifestyle, and work-related factors.
There have been a number of previous studies on the subject, with varying results, but the researchers emphasize that it is hard to compare results across these studies because the cut-off for “overtime” work has not been standardized.
“Although occasionally working overtime may have benefits for the individual and society, it is important to recognize that working excessive hours is also associated with an increased risk of major depression”, says Dr Virtanen.
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