This thought hit me the other day;
I don’t know a single person that works more than part time that is truly happy and content.
They’re all living in a constant haze of exhaustion, feeling they can’t keep up, constantly chasing the next new thing and working for those small portions of their life they are not working.
The only people I have met that are genuinely happy and enjoying life are the people I met whilst being a couchsurfing host. People that took stray jobs, traveled the world and did everything they wanted to do, worked when they had to earn a bit to travel to the next destination and for food.
Everyone I know with bachelors, masters and phds are living outside their means. They drive cool cars they never use, live in houses they never use. They just exist to work and pay off debt.
We as a society need to change. We are slowly killing ourself with consumerism and the constant chase for the next big thing.
The time in my life that I was most happy and content was during Covid lockdowns. I worked 50%, so I had a ton of time to spend home with my children, my pets, and my partner. I read books, went on walks during the day, explored my city and its hiking areas. I camped – a lot.
When I got back to working full time I had a personal crisis where I asked myself: is this it? Is this what living is? Working, never having time or energy for my family and hobbies. I became depressed and suicidal.
We need to change. We are killing ourself. Things need to change.