Living to Work/Working to Live - The Good Life?

There seems to be so much entangled in this (not so) simple re-statement of 3 words. With the constant drone about jobs (or lack thereof) and employment rates (or lack thereof) and hope for eminent resolution (or lack... I think you see where I am going with this), it is easy to see why so many conversations happen around how important work is to life. We live in a consumerized society and as much as this time is forcing many to go back to basics and re-evaluate what is really important in life, we haven't turned up with anything new.

Living a life filled with loving relationships matters, but we knew that.
Enjoying life's little moments  is important, but we knew that too.
Making yourself and others feel fulfilled is all we need, and yet another thing we already knew.
Great, we know what matters- but even Maslow will tell you that you need your basics covered before you can start thinking about that.

And unfortunately, contrary to every love song ever written, love is not all you need. Love doesn't pay the bills, love doesn't keep the lights on, love doesn't put food on the table. Sure, love makes everything worth having, but when you spend so much time just figuring out how you are going to afford to have anything, even only the most basic anything, love and life take a back seat. Even life goals related to work take a back seat to work. As much as we don't want to make life all about the "almighty dollar," it seems as though we have little choice.

I am very fortunate to have been put in a situation where I am able to work in both a positon and an industry I am not only prepared for, but willing to work in and within 2 years of graduation. And believe me I KNOW how lucky I am. Yes, I worked hard and made the most out of opportunities afforded to me, but I know that there are fellow young adults out there that have worked just as hard and have yet to even BEGIN to think of working in a career they prepared for,  all while dream careers are being filed next to "super hero" and "princess" in the "not gonna work out as a full time career" drawer.

So this all brings me to the ultimate question- do we work to live and do just what we need to do to get by and enjoy the genuinely good things in life along the way. Or, do we live to work and continuously try to progress ourselves and the system with the hopes that one day life will allow us to enjoy those genuinely good things? And worse yet, does the work always get in the way of life? Does it have to?

I don't know.

The best conclusion I can come to is a story that was shared with me by one of my business professors my senior year of school: More Than Money - What is "The Good Life" Parable. (And if you are more musically inclined, Kenny does a pretty good job of telling a similar story in the soothingly melodious way only he can: Kenny Chesney - The Life.) The story completely stirs up more questions than it answers, but sometimes the problem is solved by simply getting yourself to ask the right questions.

*NOTE: I do not own nor claim to own the rights to the video content. All original authors are respected and appreciated for their contributions. They made the point first, I just happen to agree.