/** On how great a role/job is (referring to the mechanical day-to-day tasks and less about an overarching career path), I’m thinking about the comparison between….
“do I like this job a lot because the amount of things I DON’T like to do is low”
OR
“of the few things I like to do, I REALLY like to do them”.
Do the best roles maximize both? Well obviously.
But can one overshadow the other to where, for example, one doesn’t care whether they have to deal with scheduling or emails or other BS because some 50% or 75% of your day-to-day (or maybe even ≤30%!) is incredibly satisfying/fulfilling/etc.
I initially felt that the latter would be a powerful driver, as people make large sacrifices in exchange for high level of enjoyment/pleasure/monetary achievement from a small portion of their role.
Obvious example: imagine you have to dig holes for 9 hours, and for the 10th hour, you get to eat pizza (or your food of choice). As long as you dig the holes and eat the pizza, you get guaranteed.
Some cohort of people would love this because even if they might dislike 90% + like 10% of the role, the safety/reliability/quantity of some cash flow overshadows any underlying desire….wait a minute….isn’t that the point of working? 😮 (being glib).
But on second thought, I feel that minimizing the less fun stuff is likely equally as important. Some would say making your day more efficient…automating tasks…delegating…it’s all about removing the BS and really is all in the same boat.
—
/ On qualifying true friends (using true instead of best because “best friend” is thrown around too loosely)….I don’t know where I got this from (either from a book or someone mentioned it to me) but it must have been many years ago. It’s that the definition of a true friend is:
someone who intrinsically and genuinely wants as much success and happiness for you as possible and to some extent cannot or does not feel envious/jealous about you. They want you to become as rich and healthy and well-connected and happy as possible.
It’s phrased in a similar + more thought-provoking way here by @startingfromnix (also sharing many interesting thoughts):
It's really important to find people who have a strong sense about who they are, their strengths and their flaws (high self awareness). it means they don't try to copy others, they are generous and not bitter. They won't try to pull you down, and instead truly celebrate you
— Nix 🕊 (@startingfromnix) January 15, 2023
the reverse is also true - we should note when we're feeling ill about our friend's successes: what does that say about us?
— Nix 🕊 (@startingfromnix) January 15, 2023
It’s an interesting thought exercise to look at in your own life. If you are jealous about every connection you have, does it say something about your own self character and views? A way I put it is does it highlight the lack comfortability in one’s own shoes?
Additionally, a good test is to honestly think about this from the perspective of friends (as close as you can get) who objectively are doing better than you for reasons IN their control.
This goes on another point I’ll mention in another post but it’s perhaps illogical to be envious of someone for something OUTSIDE of THEIR control, but this is for another day.
This is much different than competition between friends/peers, because in theory, the better they do, the more that might drive you to do better yourself. A rising tide lifts all boats! ⛵
tl;dr is a great job more about doing a lot of things you like doing…or not doing things you don’t like doing…or is it pretty balanced?
And thoughts on whether a “true” friend can be defined as someone you want to be very successful with no feelings of resentment?
Cheers,
Vish
Published on January 15, 2023.