I don't mean it in any disrespectful or mocking way, genuinely trying to understand the perspective. I grew up in a working class immigrant family and my parents slave so hard just to survive. To me, work has always been a business transaction since I can remember (e.g. I slave my hours away in exchange for foods in my fridge and a roof over my top). Now I work at a somewhat comfortable 9-5 corporate job and I'm shocked to see the cultural difference. A lot of boomers at my work actually view work as part of their core identity. They stay around and hang out with coworkers (whom they aren't even that close to) even when they're free to go home. They talk about work all day and pride themselves on their work products. They are obsessed with comparing themselves on work-related stuff and brag about what their kids do professionally. I don't just get it. Isn't there so much more to life than work? Don't get me wrong, I don't hate my job by any means, but I can find a million other things to enjoy before I dive into another spreadsheet for fun. Hobbies, family/friends, Netflix, sleep, walking dog, or even not doing anything. To me, work is and should be nothing more than a modern mechanism to sacrifice a fraction of my life so that the remaining time can be spent in a more enjoyable way (with the exceptions of artists, non-profit/social workers, and those who genuinely love their jobs). What am I missing here?