Preamble
First of all, I am in a blessed position where I do not have to obsess about finances (the most relevant goal of work). Instead, I explore the more indulgent aspects of work, assuming we are able to put enough food on the table and live well. This is made possible with limited liabilities and a stable background, which I must remind myself not to take for granted.
This series pens down my personal thinking behind work and its meaning - to act as an mental anchor to be deliberate, wise and free to make sound choices in this impactful area of life. It is as much a doctrine for career planning; as much as it is a balm for my soul, easily lost in a sea of choices.
Specialisation has married Work to Purpose
Like many of my others posts, I like to use my historical guesstimation as a reference point. It sets the context, and to appreciate what how the world has changed over time. I remain humbled by the advances of civilisation, and to not take things for granted.
The relationship between work and humans have evolved over time. Man was focused on hunting, and foraging for litereal survival during the dawn of civilisation. As with nature’s laws, living beings lived to work, and lived long enough to make life. There was, as long as mother nature allowed for, downtime and a commonality across small tribes. Time was largely spent eating, sleeping and living.
But a radical development changed all this as humans evolved not only as individuals, but as a collective - the emergence of different types of work/labour, and the specialisation of roles. Aside from the social impact (Which I have written about to a certain degree) - work became interrelated with our individual identities and greater purpose in life.
“The System” - a Modern Narrative on Work: Choice vs Entrapment
Modern society offers more options in work than ever before. The number of “specialisations” has exploded exponentially, in an age where one could be a i) digital ii) marketer selling iii) fruit juice to a iv) young audience. But the ills of modern society has created a narrative that leaves many trapped in an age of objective freedom. Humans are no longer shackled by our survival needs; but are instead shackled by our desire for purpose. Do we work to live? or live to work?
Along with some systemic issues in the world, I often see a dichotomous view of being “with the (capitalist) system” or against it. Digital nomads today and the hippie subculture of the 1960s are what I view as examples of those against the system. It stems from a broader push-back; an anti-establishment counterculture that is derived from an inherent disatisfaction with said “system”. Today, I also observe a broader trend in advanced societies figthing the glamourisation of work, as much as this culture of overwork initself was a human construct in the decades prior (I suppose it could relate to a societal spree of “rebuilding” after the post-war era and strife, but I’m sure there are better thought out theories on this by academics).
This is especially so in cultures seemingly entrapped in the rat race of modern society. Some call it “corporate enslavement”, bound by the illusion of choice of an ever-increasing array of career options; but mentally stuck in the rut of expectations, norms, lifestyle creep and more, etc.
So, having set the context on the nature of work, and the narrative of work - the next posts would investigate a little more into my intepretation, and what it means for me.