Work and Happiness

A few weeks ago in my Social and Political Philosophy class, we learned a bit about some of the theories of Karl Marx. He is probably most famous for his work on communism, and although many people might disagree with that aspect of his writings, his reasons for communism are based on a very interesting concept that at the core, I really like and quite agree with.

Several years before writing his renowned Communist Manifesto, Marx wrote an article about Alienated Labour. In this article, Marx argued that capitalism created two classes (owners and workers), and that in this system, the workers become socially alienated or separated from the world around them. Marx believed that pursuing meaningful work was an essence of being human, and that the type of labour workers were forced to do in this system inhibited them from fulfilling this essence.

In short, Marx was saying that we can’t truly live and be happy unless we are allowed to pursue work that is inherently meaningful to us.

I thought most people hated work?

In general, it does seem like most people hate work. In fact, I’m sure many of us think that in our greatest fantasies, we are lying around all day catching the sun, watching movies, going out with friends, etc. all the time.

But now that my university is on strike, and I have the whole day to do whatever I want, I’m starting to find that this really isn’t my fantasy after all. I can’t just play games, watch television, chat online, or read all day. I can’t be completely passive. I get bored, and I know I’d get really bored if I had a lifetime to do this.

So what do I do? I come here and write this. Or I go work on SMARTS. Or I go and try learning a new song on the piano. Yet these are all actually forms of work.

So why don’t I hate doing them? I mean, I hate doing my home work and studying for tests more than anyone I know. So what’s the difference?

I have all the time in the world to do anything I want now, but I’m here “working”. Why?

We naturally want to be productive, but not all work makes us happy

It’s not that human beings are naturally lazy. We don’t want to lie around all day, staring into the clouds. No, we actually do want to be productive – that is, we do want to “work”.

The truth is simply that some types of work make us happy, while others make us unhappy. We want to do work that makes us happy, and avoid work that doesn’t. And this differs from person to person.

I know some students who are on top of their homework and studying. They actually enjoy what they’re learning in the classes, and feel a gratifying sense of accomplishment when they do well in their courses.

On the other hand, I hate homework and studying, so I procrastinate that as long as possible. But give me something like a business to run, a website to build, or a project to manage, and I could even work 24/7 on it, because I generally love doing those types of things. I’ve always known that while I might seem lazy when it comes to school, if I fall in love with an activity, I can work harder at it than anyone I know. And doing it makes me happy.

I mean, haven’t you ever wondered why for any job, there are those who hate it, and others who completely love it? For the most part, no jobs are hated or loved by everyone – this means that some people are just naturally meant to do them, and others were forced or felt forced into it. If it seems like most people hate their jobs, it’s because most people just didn’t pursue work that naturally makes them happy.

And I think Marx really recognized an important idea here, of how we often lose sight of the importance of work to who we are, and instead become unhappy by turning it into a tool to survive rather than realizing it as an essence for what makes us fundamentally human.

Finding Jobs that Make Us Happy

Many societies and cultures are full of this concept of work as a tool to live. So what happens is that many young people don’t discover what types of work they really enjoy, but rather, pursue careers that they are often told to aim for.

I see this really often with some students interested in medicine. Because of parental influence, the high income, or the prestige of being a physician, it seems like some students are more obsessed with the idea of doctor than caring about what it actually means to be a physician. This is the same for many other jobs.

I’m not saying that in today’s world everyone has the opportunity to pursue whatever work they love. I understand that’s not the case, and sometimes, people are forced into careers they hate to make ends meet. I feel bad about that, and honestly, I’m not really sure what to say about that.

But I know at the same time there are many students are in a situation where they can choose, and have the opportunity to look deeper inside at what will really make them happy, but just aren’t shaped to do so. That also makes me sad.

Just because you get good grades in science doesn’t mean that the only career meant for you is medicine, dentistry, professorship, engineering etc. Yet that is what we teach our students – that you should aim for respectable, high-paying careers. We don’t teach students that being happy in life is more important, even if we can afford to do so.

I really don’t like it when people lump me in the category of being “supposed” to go into medicine because I have good grades and seem ambitious. In fact, I struggled many times this past summer thinking about whether medicine would make me happy.

I can honestly say that only doing medicine for the rest of my life would not make me happy. While there are aspects of medicine that can make me happy, I know that I also need healthy relationships and a happy family for me to be happy. I love to start projects, teach, and mentor – I can’t give those things up. I like doing those types of work too.

Just realize that only you know what truly makes you happy, and only you know what you’re “supposed” to do. I really hope you’re able to figure that out, and when you do, I think you’ll be a lot more comfortable thinking about the future, and really, just being happy day to day.