How to have a life even though you work

Is it worth reading this post? 

Find out with 3 questions: 

1. Do you work? 
2. Have you got a life other than work?  
3. Would you like one? 

If your answers are  

1. Yes 
2. No / not really / sigh / crying) 
3. Yes (but maybe that’s not possible) 

Then yes, if not, then probably not. 

Work and clarity 

It’s good to be clear what work is for. The answer changes according to the point of view. For the employee, work is simply about getting money. Money is really good for buying stuff. Work may also be about ‘fulfilment’, socialising’ and so on as well but these are extras. You work to eat. Simple. Other ‘roles’ are made up by society as games to play and distract from what work actually is.

Get your mind right, Luke!  

(image credit: https://memegenerator.net/instance/67090986/cool-hand-luke-1-you-got-to-git-your-mind-right-luke-my-mind-is-right-boss) 

Society today is toxically workcentric.  

Our lives revolve around and are subordinate to our jobs. This is an abhorrence. It is good for keeping the few rich in the style to which we have laboured to make them accustomed and it is great for social control, to keep the powerful safe from the rest of us. Work is our society’s incarnation of slavery. So, get your mind right if you want a life. Your job is mainly there to keep you in line and keep you producing and consuming.  That’s why you and I work – we are wage slaves. 

Games that confuse people 

People are social animals which means they form hierarchies, play mind games and generally try to be better than each other, play status games, insiders and outsiders games – sad but true. This is especially evident in the workplace partly in the form of ‘management’ who are given power to act out their dysfunctions through playing on  fear of losing our income, and unfortunately partly through co workers who buy into the illusion and play psychological games of approval and disapproval. So the simplicity of work is obfuscated with social psychological games, all of which is good news for the ones who want to control us and are no doubt very happy when we do it for them. ‘Work’ is often a daily experience of people misunderstanding why they are doing what they are doing, what is being done to them and mostly making life harder for themselves and others.  

“You know it may be a game, but I won’t play to lose” (Dire Straits) 

Would sir, madam like a life? Well thank you, how much will that cost? How much? Oh… As an individual you have a choice.  

1. You can play the game on offer in the way it is offered, build a career and remain unconscious that none of your feelings of success or failure are actually from your busy work. That is the game society expects from us all. It is simply ignorant and serves the power hungry well. 
2. You could play the game knowing it is a game and build a career whilst you fit in ‘real life’ round the edges. That is the choice made by many who accept the status quo and are resigned to making the best of it as possible given the economic reality.  
3. You could begin using the game to your advantage, change the rules of the game without telling anyone… 

What’s behind door number 3? 

There could be many versions of this so of course my thoughts here are my particular version and reflect my preferences. 

It starts with mindset 

Recognise what money is for. It’s for buying stuff you actually need. Food, housing, health care, transport and the like. Money is not for buying a fix for your current cravings whether that be a shiny new car or another book… (sigh). 

It continues with deciding what you are willing to do to get the money you need. 

This naturally depends on your circumstances, those with larger families will need more than a single person, for example. Think about lifestyle. What is important to you about how you live? What do you need to do to fund that lifestyle in a way that doesn’t compromise your ability to live it?  How much time are you willing to sacrifice to get the money? 

Where are you now? 

Just starting out in the world? In a job that sucks your time and your soul? Part way up a career ladder leaning against the wrong wall?  

Here is what to do for all of the above. 

• Clearly decide what your chosen lifestyle is – design your life as a project. 
• Write down where you are right now in relation to all the aspects of the destination lifestyle. Make it as specific as possible. For example, if your aim is to make a certain amount of money from trading forex, what are you actually doing about that right now? 
• For each aspect in your designer life you have a starting point and a destination. Well done, GPS installed… 
• Take the next step 
• Review where you are now in relation to your final destination 
• Take the next step. 
• Review where you are in relation to your destination. 
• Take… 

Do you get the idea? 

It continues with mindset 

Live on purpose. Your purpose. 

Step by step, day by day, craft what you want in the world. You will forget and be drawn in to the toxic dream being carefully woven by the vested interests. When you wake up, carry on.  Seek out other people on the journey – help each other to wake up. 

Help me to wake up and I’ll nudge you when you snore! 

Play your own game, don’t need what they want you to need. Create what you want on your own terms small step by small step, moving towards the impossible.  

Cowboy up… 

Please share your lifestyle destinations on the facebook page, where are you now and what is your first step. Comment here and / or share on the FB page.