I Really Like to Work

Last Tuesday I met my friend Cate down in Madrid where we wandered about, ate and drank for several days. We then returned home on Friday and repeated the Madrid activities in San Sebastian, Pamplona, and Bilbao until she left last night. Totally relaxing and lots of fun.

Imagine my surprise, therefore, on Sunday night when I found myself wishing I could just go back to work on Monday. I was having a great time; I just missed working.

I've never missed working. In fact, I have always thought that I'd be happiest retired, spending my days puttering about. In reality, however, it was simply a case of not doing the right sort of work. I'm too independent to suffer a boss, except on a very part-time, hands-off basis (like with my teaching English). When I started my own business, I thought I'd want to work, but actually I just avoided working, to the point that I made more work for myself (through volunteering on my industry's national association and writing endless business and marketing plans).

Last year when I lived in France, I considered myself retired, but I actually had a part-time job. I wrote, I blogged and I kept up at my business-related networking. It was on a part-time basis, but it was work. I just didn't consider it so because I enjoyed doing it so much. Now I work about thirty hours a week on various writing and blog-related projects.

And I miss it when I don't do it.

Someday Lessons:

• Supposedly laziness might just be a case of a square peg in a round hole.
• If you aren't aware of what's going on inside, you'll miss important self-discovery moments.

Comments

[Urban Panther]

BINGO! I think it is a matter of finding work that doesn't feel like work. I am still struggling in my 9-5 job, because I know it's not the right fit. However, I also put in 2-3 hours of blogging work (writing, reading, commenting) a day and those hours fly by, and I find myself wishing I had even more hours to dedicate to it. Which is good, because it gives me the incentive to work even harder at the blogging so it can help support me financially.

[Amy Mowbray]

Great post Alex. I can't imagine having a job that I didn't enjoy doing. I just wish stay-at-home mom's earned a salary.

[Wendi Kelly]

Hi Alex,
I spend my days writing and blogging and being a stay at home Mom, which my husband refers to as the Home Manager, A title I'm not sure I've grown into yet. But I do know I miss it when I'm not doing it and I feel blessed that I CAN do it.

By the way, I like it here. It has a nice honest, real feel to it. I came here the first day you came to ER and I keep coming back. You are vulnerable and authentic. Amazingly, that's hard to come by in the blogging world, try to hang on to that. See you at ER.
Wendi/Selene

[Alex Fayle]

@UP - I'm so happy for you that you've found something that you love doing so much and it's obvious by the response you're getting that everyone else loves what you're doing too!

@Amy - You need to move to a Scandanavian country - don't they pay mothers to stay home?

@Wendi - Thank you so much! Glad you enjoy the blog. And it sounds like you have a great "job" - Home Manager best describes it I'm sure - there are so many components to running a home, especially with kids.