Work to live / live to work
Monday, August 23, 2010 at 1:05PM 
In the age-old, and turned generational, debate of "work to live" versus "live to work", I often find myself confounded at my options. In fact, I remember being puzzled when a friend of mine from high school stated confidently, "I will always work to live." I wondered what work meant to him. But his view isn't uncommon these days.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in the United States, we spend most of our days at work; more time than any other activity. And although most of us aren’t actually working in that kind of environment, many people seem to approach work as it’s depicted in Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Times” (look it up on YouTube).
Recently, at an all-team meeting, Mr. Chuck Hyde, our CEO, remarked, "We work too hard not to bring our whole selves here [to The Center]." In my mind, he was addressing the question you and I and everyone else asks routinely; does it matter? Does what we do every day matter? And is it really worth all this time and energy? Chuck's right. We all invest too many hours and too much energy in our workplaces to say that life is what happens outside and away from the office. Life just simply happens. Fortunately, there's a third option in the great debate…
"Early in his career, he worked to live. Then, as he got caught up in the pursuit of wealth and grandeur, he lived to work. Today, he lives and works to give" (Blanchard, Cathy 113). Giving is what adds significance to living. Fortunately, the generous giver is a lifestyle and not a job description--you don't have to feel like you're missing out because you sell snow cones. We can give whenever, wherever and to whoever. Resolution #1: approach everyday of my life (yes, that includes my work) as an opportunity to give.
Quote taken from The Generosity Factor, by Ken Blanchard and S. Truett Cathy. I recommend the book. By the way, this is not a paid endorsement.
By Clayton Anderson, second year Soderquist Fellow
Reader Comments (3)
Paraphrasing and substituting "work" for "leadership" in a famous Drucker quote, "Work is only a means. To what end is the essential question."
If your work has purpose - or if you can find purpose in your work - you will be way, way ahead of the curve.
One of my all time favorite quotes from Andy Stanley...
"The purpose of my life at work is to show that God is at work in my life."
As you can imagine, I don't live up to that purpose every day of every work week; BUT, with that framework, I certainly am more frequently intentional about WHAT I choose to work on and HOW I approach the work.
Great conversation, Clayton.
i had a flash of genius a couple of weeks ago. the world is about to witness the first ever Human revolution. an operating system that can run on human beings.
As you can imagine the tallest mountain on planet Earth is mount doubt and not mount Everest. Human being has been discovered to be nothing but forms or viewpoints. So what matters in life is what u will see. America can be viewed directly from Europe or Africa even from any part of the world.
The world's sight must be merged with the sight of God for us to have any hope of perpetual immortality. Eternity truly is in view. can you see?