I’ve been discussing these questions with myself quite often lately, having retired from a always-on corporate tech career last year. I always assumed I would jump straight into writing and volunteering with unlimited freedom of retirement. Yet I have not jumped in. Why kit? At first I was stunned senseless by my empty calendar. Cured quickly. The blocky thing that is lingering, I’m realizing, is that I’m missing my work tribes.
Every company - its colleagues, customers and partners - is a tribe. Working has always been a way to join/evolve/affect a global tribal community. Find people with shared values, different perspectives. Grow with them. Help them along their growth path.
I’m not going to take a job to get that sense of community back. I do want to find a way to replace it.
One of your (John's) summary points - "We have our dreams, but fear holds us back". I thought about this....when I had kids, one of the overriding themes became "Provider". And, I think, directed my focus to both purpose and income. Growing up relatively poor, my parents did the best they could. And encouraged me to go to college. Which I did, but with plenty of 9% student loans and a 20-hour per week job at UPS.
So I wanted to get my kids through higher education without incurring debt. Work got that done. Was there an element of fear? I don't know. did it "throttle" my choices in work? Perhaps. Any regrets? no
I work because I genuinely enjoy it! And when I do not enjoy, I find something else to do. This doesn't mean you don't have days or even weeks where you greatly dislike the work, your job, your boss, peers, or even your crazy clients, but just means you find some sense of purpose and enjoyment out of the good to great days.
I was once told that "God gave us work in order to learn about ourselves through others". Who knows who said it, but it does ring true. What other "thing" gives us such a bounty of opportunity to better ourselves, our decision making, our communication skills, etc.
I may have posted this before but its worth repeating in partial answer to your question. This quote opens President Biden's book, "Promise Me, Dad":
Rules for Happiness: something to do,
someone to love, something to hope for.
- Immanuel Kant
I am fortunate in this regard, and I'll continue my work as currently constituted until my last breath - some time each week is spent supporting People First, which is its own reward; the rest of my week, I focus upon my writing - essays, stories, poems - which has been my passion/ obsession since I was 12 years old.
A finely wrought metaphor in poems and stories, one that reaches past our limits, is a gift given (for those that prefer evidence, listen to Amanda Gorman's inaugural performance).
This is my "something to do," rain or shine, love lost or being lost, in sickness or health, wherever and whenever we are. We write for those who love to read.
I’ve been discussing these questions with myself quite often lately, having retired from a always-on corporate tech career last year. I always assumed I would jump straight into writing and volunteering with unlimited freedom of retirement. Yet I have not jumped in. Why kit? At first I was stunned senseless by my empty calendar. Cured quickly. The blocky thing that is lingering, I’m realizing, is that I’m missing my work tribes.
Every company - its colleagues, customers and partners - is a tribe. Working has always been a way to join/evolve/affect a global tribal community. Find people with shared values, different perspectives. Grow with them. Help them along their growth path.
I’m not going to take a job to get that sense of community back. I do want to find a way to replace it.
One of your (John's) summary points - "We have our dreams, but fear holds us back". I thought about this....when I had kids, one of the overriding themes became "Provider". And, I think, directed my focus to both purpose and income. Growing up relatively poor, my parents did the best they could. And encouraged me to go to college. Which I did, but with plenty of 9% student loans and a 20-hour per week job at UPS.
So I wanted to get my kids through higher education without incurring debt. Work got that done. Was there an element of fear? I don't know. did it "throttle" my choices in work? Perhaps. Any regrets? no
I work because I genuinely enjoy it! And when I do not enjoy, I find something else to do. This doesn't mean you don't have days or even weeks where you greatly dislike the work, your job, your boss, peers, or even your crazy clients, but just means you find some sense of purpose and enjoyment out of the good to great days.
I was once told that "God gave us work in order to learn about ourselves through others". Who knows who said it, but it does ring true. What other "thing" gives us such a bounty of opportunity to better ourselves, our decision making, our communication skills, etc.
Work represents possibilities.
ARBEIT MACHT DAS LEBEN SUSS
I may have posted this before but its worth repeating in partial answer to your question. This quote opens President Biden's book, "Promise Me, Dad":
Rules for Happiness: something to do,
someone to love, something to hope for.
- Immanuel Kant
I am fortunate in this regard, and I'll continue my work as currently constituted until my last breath - some time each week is spent supporting People First, which is its own reward; the rest of my week, I focus upon my writing - essays, stories, poems - which has been my passion/ obsession since I was 12 years old.
A finely wrought metaphor in poems and stories, one that reaches past our limits, is a gift given (for those that prefer evidence, listen to Amanda Gorman's inaugural performance).
This is my "something to do," rain or shine, love lost or being lost, in sickness or health, wherever and whenever we are. We write for those who love to read.
Your turn.