Why do we work so hard?

There are two kinds of people in this world --those who work enough not to get fired and those who work super hard til peng.

Which are you? And should you consider working so hard in the first place? I heard a horror story of a hard-working exec who burnt the midnight oil in his 20's and 30's only to find out he has cancer in his 40’s. Was it his work ethic that caused it? Or would he have had it either way?

One doesn’t know. But it does beg the question --why work so hard and let the number of zeroes in our bank accounts give us worry? Is it worth the stress and the time away from our loved ones? How often is it that we heard the stories of those who were so busy making money that they bought their children presents but never gave them enough attention?

There is a line to drawn and we all know what will happen if we let our ambitions blind us to why we work so hard in the first place.

If you are a go-getter, I'm sure you are working on projects outside your job scope because you wish to shine and improve faster, which leads me to my next question:

Have you ever on an "off day", told your loved ones that you will be busy working on your own accord?

I did and it made me think:

“You know... the whole point of making lots of money is to eventually free yourself and spend more time with family” I thought to myself.

This reminds me of that parable of the Mexican fisherman and the Harvard MBA:

An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

The Mexican replied, “only a little while. The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs. The American then asked, “but what do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siestas with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine, and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life.” The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually, you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing, and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City, where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied, “15 – 20 years.”

“But what then?” Asked the Mexican.

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions!”

“Millions – then what?”

The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

I'm not asking for you to throw away your responsibility and spend 24/7 time with your family. What I am saying is:

Know when you stop and know when to continue. Keep in mind what it was you are after all along because enjoying it may be a lot closer than you think.

---

If you liked this

I write longer and more detailed articles on behavioral psychology and performance improvement at BenSimBlog.com