Sunday is always a busy day here and all the team were in packing orders, taking photos of newly refurbished tools that will be described and listed during the coming week. Whilst this is going on, I’m usually organising the work for the week ahead and usually sharpen a couple of saws as part of my Sunday therapy.
I was thinking today when I was young how I spent so many Sunday’s waiting for Monday and it was such an unproductive day. Fatherhood brought a different type of day where my week’s work finished and my home work began, there always seemed to be an ongoing project and the wife and kids always found more to add to the list.
Many years ago, I accepted that anything good in life only comes with hard work, that includes being a good person and helpful to those who need it. There’s a saying ‘the harder we work the luckier we get’ and it’s true to some extent but it really only comes through believing in our own self-worth.
I always found comfort in my work and the skills it created in me, they are one of my most cherished possessions, primarily because they have been hard earned and are a large part of me as a person. I cannot reiterate how important having transferable and a wide range of skills are to our own self confidence.
So, in some respects I’d say “I’m a workaholic” but I would also say, “only in the things I feel passionate about”. I’ve done many jobs I have not enjoyed in my life and would only do what is required before switching to something I found far more interesting. I think that’s the key really and becoming highly skilled at something you enjoy is the foundation to happiness in general, this also has a direct impact on those who are around you.
We are all different and this is a key factor, different is good and points to individualism and great ideas. It leads to free thinking and total control over your own destiny if you believe in what you are doing and know the reasons why.
‘I work to live, not live to work’ yes, we have all heard this saying, probably when we were young. The only problem is those same people who believe this are just ‘work-shy workaholics’ passionately wasting their time on being idle. The same waiting for Monday logic applies to the rest of their unlucky, someone else is to blame, lives. I’ve gone past the stage of making excuses many years ago and regardless of our backgrounds or intellect, hard work can break down many barriers with social mobility.
A good work ethic makes lives better for one’s own self and their loved ones and those with it will constantly improve, learn and find new adventures with the skills they develop. Those with a good work ethic evolve and as life goes on and usually become a better version of the person they once were and it’s safe to say those who do more with their lives gain more through that extra effort.
In reality it has to be said there are many people with full and fruitful lives but all without exception these require effort and dedication to keep these on track. There are also, as life moves on, those who will become a little lost as the fluidity of life moves around them, it’s generally time to change and bring in new aspects to their lives. Hobbies are a great way of doing this which if taken seriously can change a person’s future. They keep people active and can give them a new passion and hunger that can be very rewarding beyond the aspect of creating things.
Those who have had solid careers know the foundations have to be built first and they will recognise also that the repetition aspect of doing their jobs made them easier as they progressed, so bare this in mind when at first things don’t come naturally with a new hobby.
As frustrated as you may be when starting out to consider that to become competent it requires dedication and practice and that’s where the work ethic kicks in. The passion comes from achievements and mastering what was once hard to do, also through the progress you made once it becomes much more natural.
I hope you find a passion that will inspire you to become a workaholic just like me where a full life awaits you in the future.
