In our modern age, our lives depend on work, so much so that many of us question our sense of purpose. The economy is built on profit and competition which sees people’s lives depend entirely on their wages. Work-life today means more than household chores but a lifetime spent earning and living. It means having a career – an identity where we earn and spend most of our hours and days away from our family and serving the economy. The established status quo, where we are raised from schooling to work life, would lead us to assume lasting fulfilment is around the corner, possibly found in the workplace. It’s no surprise the talk of who we are comes down to talking about what job or career we pursue. However, the meaning of who we are is not found nor established in our work life. The jobs or career paths we take are mostly circumstantial, carved by events and constraints, at times borne out of a necessity to make a simple living. This is not anti-work but an important reminder that our purpose and meaning stem from places beyond our alienating economy, in our personal lives concerning how we think, communicate and enjoy our spare hours. This article seeks to highlight the lack of purpose in modern work life in which many of us are replaceable numbers. It will then be emphasised that the way we spend our spare hours has a major impact on feeling and maintaining self-worth. Finally, the article will offer some advice for finding passions and building character.
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