Occasionally, we are confronted with the question, “Are you working to live, or living to work?” It is easy to disregard the question, but the two statements are profoundly different, as is the case in today’s quote.

In virtually all modern and developed societies, and especially in major towns and cities, people need money to live. And we earn money, or make a living, by working. However, in and of itself, work can be the endless hamster wheel, as we work more to earn more in the hope of being able to live more comfortably and afford the thing we want. However, the effort to make a living can end up consuming most of our waking hours leaving little time to actually enjoy the life we have been working to create and all of the things we have acquired.

Unfortunately, for many of us, our work – how we make a living – is a huge part of our identity. We have thus put a lot of thought, effort and even strategy, into our profession and work life, but arguably, not a similar effort into how we approach our overall life – though we might want to achieve a few personal milestones along the way.

 

Throughout the day, we invite you to revisit this quote. Below are a few questions you may wish to ask yourself, and those who journal may find them especially useful:

• In my opinion, what is the difference between ‘making a living’ and ‘making a life’?
• How successfully have I been able to make the distinction between ‘making a living’ and ‘making a life’?
• What more can I do to ensure that I am optimally ‘making a liiving’?
• What more can I do to ensure that I am truly ‘making a life’?

 

 

Best wishes and have a great day!!