Comments on: Loving Your Work is Overrated

By: PSH | Welcome » Starting a Business Isn’t as Crazy and Risky as They Say.

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:33:27 +0000

[...] your own business may be the way to break the pattern — both making money and doing what you love — but small business is stressful and difficult and scary. Is it worth [...]

By: Tom Volkar

Tom Volkar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:43:00 +0000

Dawn – Welcome. Good point. But then again being too realistic can be so limiting. I’ve decided that discovering and following a true calling and turning it into a profitable business is our best bet. I almost always want to work on my calling!

By: Dawn Baird

Dawn Baird — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:03:13 +0000

I love this! Sometimes choices about taking on work are more to do with needing an income, or building a portfolio, or working with great thinkers and doers, MORE than doing what you love. This just isn’t a realistic option all of the time.
Dawn Baird´s last blog ..Business Networking for Women in Northern Ireland

By: Starting a business isn’t as crazy and risky as they say

Starting a business isn’t as crazy and risky as they say — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 20:06:34 +0000

[...] your own business may be the way to break the pattern — both making money and doing what you love — but small business is stressful and difficult and scary. Is it worth [...]

By: Starting a business isn’t as crazy and risky as they say « Austin Entrepreneur Network

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 20:06:35 +0000

[...] your own business may be the way to break the pattern — both making money and doing what you love — but small business is stressful and difficult and scary. Is it worth [...]

By: Starting a business isn’t as crazy and risky as they say | Insights into Startups and Entrepreneurship - nPost Blog

Wed, 27 May 2009 16:13:44 +0000

[...] your own business may be the way to break the pattern — both making money and doing what you love — but small business is stressful and difficult and scary. Is it worth [...]

By: Tom Volkar

Tom Volkar — Mon, 04 May 2009 11:42:46 +0000

Barbara – “Love is loaded with the notion that it is worth sacrificing wants for.” Thanks for this. Your preciseness did indeed add to the distinction. Interesting that you were judged by the “right livelihood” crew. Not surprising because they can do judgment so well when it doesn’t fit there idea of something. The key of course is just to do what we want to do and enjoy the doing of it. I’m sure that some time in the not too distant future I’ll radically simplify my life and grow vegetables as my first priority, just because I want to.

By: Barbara Saunders

Barbara Saunders — Mon, 04 May 2009 01:45:37 +0000

To some degree this is a semantic argument.
But like all semantic arguments, the trick is in getting precise:

After years of playing around with right livelihood concepts, I’ve come to the conclusion that for some individuals, right livelihood is poisoned with the residue of duty. Doing what they love IS, for many, something like sticking with a drab marriage for the kids’ sake.

For many years, I was a personal fitness trainer. I loved my life while doing it but, notably, didn’t LOVE my work. Exercise, sports, and fitness had been a part of my life since childhood. I enjoyed sharing what I knew with others, helping them with their health and happiness. The emotion surrounding it was calmer and easier than anything I’d call “passion” or “love.”

Andrea, I think it is hard to rationalize oneself into a want. A want is simple: I want a beer right now. I want some ice cream. I don’t want to get up at the crack of dawn. I want to work with people I like. Love is loaded with the notion that it is worth sacrificing wants for.

“Want” actually describes it better. I LIKED exercising. I LIKED teaching. I WANTED to spend my time in the gym not behind some desk or computer and to have friendly relationships with clients rather than stuffy ones with high-powered colleagues.

Interestingly enough, some of the biggest critics of my career choice, the ones who insisted I must have some higher calling to make use of my “talents” or “intelligence” were – you guessed it – the “right livelihood” crew.

By: Doing Work You Love «

Doing Work You Love « — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:40:04 +0000

[...] If you would like to read Tom Volkar’s post and my reply, click here. [...]

By: Jocelyn at I TAKE OFF THE MASK

Jocelyn at I TAKE OFF THE MASK — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 12:31:03 +0000

Great post, Tom! And very timely, at least for me I’ve been trying to make very important career decisions lately, and I do agree that it isn’t always between work that we don’t love and work that we love to do. There is also a case of transition where we transcend from something that already bores us or stifles our growth to something that would empower us and enable us to reach loftier goals. Nice blog, I’ve already added you to my blogroll.

Jocelyn at I TAKE OFF THE MASKs last blog post..On Hope – Inspirational Quote