Taking a little break this long weekend: a break from jobs, bathroom renovations and ultimately, just taking a breather from routines and the daily hustle.
To do so, we have run off (ok, in reality it was a long drive) to the east coast to try to squeeze out the last drops of summer at a cozy little hideaway near Laurencetown beach, N.S.
Labour Day weekend is normally a golden opportunity to enjoy a few relaxed and carefree days, before resetting and settling into fall mode.
And for me, it’s an opportunity to step back, sit down and reflect… and of course to put it all together in a blog!
There were a few articles this weekend pondering the origins and significance of Labour Day. One article emphasized the importance of labour in our lives and included the average amount of time spent over one’s lifetime working (an average of 43 years). The article went on to conclude that basically our jobs define us.
I beg to differ.
Actually, I vehemently contest.
Sure, your work can define you… if you let it.
But shouldn’t it be the other way around?
Regardless of the time spent working (add on time spent on studies and training), shouldn’t we first and foremost define ourselves?
Moreover, because of the substantial portion of our lives spent grinding – shouldn’t we justly choose work that reflects our quintessential selves?
Ultimately, our choice of work should be a reflection of our hopes, dreams and fears. It should reveal the essence of our core…
Utopian thoughts, you say?
Maybe, but maybe I feel like I live in a society and an era that such thoughts are less lofty than once imagined.
In the early 80’s, Loverboy1 confirmed that we are all only working for the weekend.
Over 40 years later – many have realised that this mantra leaves you with the short end of the stick.
If you let your job define you, and only work for the weekend, you will ultimately be confined to a destiny that was not your choosing.
Not your will.
Not your way.
Not you.
Resigned to work to live.
What if it could be different. If you dared to define yourself first and let your chosen job fall into place?
This is not idle work. And it may be a process that takes many years, trials, resets, blips and falters. And it may not be the obvious choice. Or the option endorsed by society. Or even the one that you spent years studying for.
It might just be on the road less travelled.
The unbeaten path.
Considering the weight of the decision and the significance of the commitment …don’t you owe it to yourself to choose more than a job that you work for, but a job that works for you.
I’d say you are worth it.
And the ROI2…priceless.
You, by definition.
As always, defined with #Grit&Grace.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working_for_the_Weekend ↩︎
- (Return on Investment)… just in case! 😉 ↩︎
Grit&Grace 