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Giving Up the “Good Life”

I work non-stop now.  And you know what? I’m loving every second of it.

I’m a high-school dropout.  A two-time grad school drop out.  A cubicle drop out. And the list goes on.

I thought I was lazy until I learned how to build my own life.

I thought I was lazy until I created my own job.

I thought I was a late-riser until I got two employees who start every morning at 8:00AM.

But now I’m 28, and I’m working on issues that existed long before I was ever born, and that will exist long after I’ve left this earth.

There’s so much talk these days about low-hour work weeks, lifestyle design, escaping from your cubicle, etc. etc. etc.  And some times all this away-motivated psychology really gets me down.

Sometimes it seems like the only things people have to say about work is that they don’t want to do it. But sometimes freedom is being given the opportunity to work your ass off trying to make a difference.

But the truth is that nothing truly remarkable is easily done (if it could be done easily, it probably wouldn’t be that remarkable).

There are at least two type of business people: (1) opportunists who want to capitalize on the latest “tricks,” and (2) innovators focused on creating multiple billion dollars worth of value in the hopes of receiving a couple million in return.

Which one are you?

–Clay

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  • As you might guess I would say, Clay, I'm neither one nor two. I will say, however, that I am closest to number two.


    Lately I've been reading existential philosophy (Nietzsche, Heidegger, Kierkegaard) and I'm confident that the primary challenge most of us have is with language.



    For example, specifically with language, you say in this post, "Sometimes it seems like the only things people have to say about work is that they don’t want to do it." An existentialist, especially Heidegger, would say that these people are unhappy because their definition of work is aligned with social conventions -- that they need to define "work" for themselves, then pursue that definition.



    "Man acts as though he were the shaper and master of language, while in fact language remains the master of man." ~ Martin Heidegger



    It seems as if you are defining your own terms, Clay, such as freedom, work and value.



    Keep up the good "work."



    Kent



    Kent
  • I strive to be #2.


    While I'm not a high school or college drop out I've always pegged myself as lazy, an underachiever and a slacker. Thus the name of my own blog about life.



    I've found a few things that I really love doing and pouring myself into and sometimes I could give a damn if I got paid for them. It's nice cause well it lets me eat and travel, but when I can share something I find meaningful that's often the most enjoyable part of it. A few of these things take a lot of work or I've invested years of time into them and developing expertise but work is its own reward.



    Someday I'll have a house in the woods and I'll be happy to go out and split firewood for hours.
  • Tracy
    I think that the movement toward escaping the cubicle is about choices. Do I want to wake up and go into work where the rules are written by a boss, or don't I? Do I want to try to do something else, to spend the time and effort to create a sustainable way to build something that will support me or don't I? When it gets hard, when it sucks, when I want to lie down, what about then?


    Some people will always be grasping for "easy". Easy doesn't exist in the world of the early entrepreneur. If you find something you love, you'll always be more inclined to put in the long hours and maybe not even notice that the time has passed. If you put in the long hours for something that makes a difference, then the time has been well spent.
  • Good post here. I like your point about how it seems like all people have to say about work is that they don't want to do it. This is very true in a lot of cases. I think sometimes people confuse my desire to work at home for myself with being lazy, and it couldn't be less true.
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