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Always on the job…

The first of a three-part article in the NYTimes reports studies showing that increasing stress levels can have a direct impact on workers’ physical and mental health. Stress can come from both increasing hours and responsiblity as well as from worry about job security and crisis-driven office cultures.

“What we know about stress is that it’s probably even worse than we thought,” Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser said.

Certainly this is something that all of us deal with. If we’re lucky enough to have a job, we worry about losing it. Hard work doesn’t guarantee employment anymore. Then there’s the cycle of immersing oneself so totally in work that there is little time for anything else, thereby eliminating the comfort and refreshment of family and recreation.

Myself I think this goes back to the myth that work is everything. I’m talking about employment here, not the passion that one can find in life. The idea that one’s job (the thing that puts money in your pocket) should occupy one’s whole being is more and more the norm. I’m sticking with my idea — the “day” job that lets me keep everything together so I can be passionate about what I choose.

Should you enjoy your daily employment? That’s certainly preferable and I think it’s possible to do so no matter what the task. If you don’t enjoy it, do find something else. I only mean that your job shouldn’t be your life and that you should not become your job.

Short version: Get a life.