Working hard is overrated
Magical words from Caterina:
Much more important than working hard is knowing how to find the right thing to work on. Paying attention to what is going on in the world. Seeing patterns. Seeing things as they are rather than how you want them to be. Being able to read what people want. Putting yourself in the right place where information is flowing freely and interesting new juxtapositions can be seen. But you can save yourself a lot of time by working on the right thing. Working hard, even, if that’s what you like to do.
I agree with this, even though my subconscious flip flops on the issue pretty regularly. Of course, wisdom like this is easy to take advantage of, or use in the wrong way. A lot of people who don’t work hard are also not working on the right thing… probably a bigger percent actually.
And then, what’s the right thing? Is it that magical task that history has put you right in front of? That you must do as the right ideas and right technologies come together in the right place? And, what if that right thing isn’t fulfilling?
Is it better to work hard on the right thing that is not fulfilling or the wrong thing that is fulfilling? Or, does fulfillment come from the sense that you are working on the right thing? I don’t know.
October 10th, 2009 at 9:50 am
Hi Buster. I hear ya buddy, it’s kinda nerve-wracking to think that you could be working hard to no good effect. And it’s a very real possibility, as many people’s experience has shown! So, the real thing you want to know is: how can you detect when your effort is going to waste? And when is it harmful?
There is a tipping point in any endeavor where focus becomes obsession, and at that point you’ve made a blunder. This is because any problem worth solving requires a combination of openness to new ideas (a relaxed perception of the world), and a shut-out-the-world focus required to apply an idea to a particular case (a focused bent on accomplishing a goal).
They key to happiness in work is the ability to direct your awareness as you would like, particularly with the level of perception vs. judging that is appropriate, but always with constant awareness of your mind and body’s current capacity to work.
A common and terrible error-mode is obsession, when the mind can no longer put the problem down, and cannot rest itself. This results in the mind going in circles, yielding neither insight nor productive application. All aspects of life can be disturbed, from sleep to eating habits, and it is the cause of so much burn-out. This one is easy to spot, but can be hard to get under control: cold-turkey for a few days and hanging around friends doing something completely different helps.
Another hard-work error-mode is the self-delusion that the work is more enjoyable than it actually is, simply because the outcome is desired. It is the unhealthy extreme of delayed-gratification. The mind grows more and more unhappy and miserable, until again, burn out occurs. This is easier to handle: just do something you really like!
In the end a great deal of these problems stem from ego: we have this idea of ourselves as implacably hard-working. And maybe we are like that, sometimes. But other times we are lazy and disinterested, wanting only to lounge around and read a good book. Over time this desire for rest may go down, but if it arises be kind to yourself and just let it happen. Everything will work out alright in the end.
Hope this finds you well,
Josh
October 19th, 2009 at 7:15 am
It’s certainly tough to get the balance right!