Labor of Love

Volunteering has its merit.  It brings fulfillment to the volunteer, free work to an organization in need and it commonly results in some lasting relationships that stand the test of time.  

When I signed up for my first volunteer position, the previous volunteer mentioned to me that it was “a labor of love” and not to do it if I wasn’t passionate about making positive change without reward.  

Being 22 and full of energy with nowhere to put it, I signed up immediately.   

What resulted from that position was the fulfillment and lasting relationships that I mentioned.  I don’t regret it and feel that if anything, I gained more from the experience than I was able to provide while serving.  Selfish I know.   

In the spirit of Labor Day, I’m reflecting on the labors of love that brought about the change that we see today.  A cynic may say that all work is done with the intention of reaping reward but I believe strongly that there are some people out there who are truly in it for the common good.  Willing to get dirty without asking for anything in return.   

I took a vacation last week and return to the coaching floor tomorrow.  Something I heard recently stood out to me.  “Kevin is one of those weird ones who actually is excited to go back to work.” It stuck with me because a.) it’s true and b.) it shouldn’t be weird and I hope that it isn’t!  

I heard “pursue your passion” a lot growing up in school.  “Love your work and you’ll never work a day in your life”.  These are common phrases that we hear to give us hope that there is a perfect job out there giving us the freedom to live the way we want with zero stress and total completion of Maslow’s Hierarchy.  

These are bullshit phrases if you ask me.   

We could battle with cliches here, as the one “anything worth getting is worth working for” directly contradicts these passion project ideas but in the interest of reason, let’s think about why people work.   

Pay the bills

Despite wanting to do what you love, sometimes what you love just doesn’t pay for cable.  Comcast really has a stranglehold these days.   

Have a positive impact

As fun as it is to be the bad guy sometimes, it makes us feel all cuddly inside if we can improve the world around us. 

Social life

Work is where we spend the best part of our days during the best years of our life.  Despite our best efforts, we tend to become close in some way to those we work around.  This can really impact job satisfaction in both directions.  

Clearly, a job is more than pursuing our passions and it’s more than a labor of love.  I challenge you on this Labor Day to think deeply about your work environment.  When you take time off, are you excited to get back to it?  Not being excited to go to work doesn’t have to mean that you’re in the wrong job.  It may just mean altering a perspective or expectation of it.  Either way.  If you’re not excited to get up tomorrow and scrap, find a way to change that.   

Happy Labor Day!