Work to Live or Live to Work?

There is a big debate around “working to live or living to work”; many people aren’t sure which one they should live by or which one is more efficient for their wellbeing and career in the long-run. The truth is, there is no right or wrong answer as to which is best because it is essentially how you have been brought up or how you feel you should spend your time.

By answering the question honestly for yourself, it may allow you to make intelligent career choices – and potentially make you happier in the long run! Continue reading this blog post to get to the bottom of how you balance your work and home life, and if it’s the best way to maintain a happy and healthy wellbeing. 

Working to Live

People who work to live quite simply only have their job for the sole purpose of earning money. 

Their primary purpose to work is to earn the money that is necessary to support themselves and their families- Even if they are in a job that brings them misery! They are uninterested during the working week, leading them to look forward to the weekends and have other priorities; their job is not their main focus. 

Many people who work to live, see their job as a means to an end. However, working to live is not always seen as a satisfactory way to go about life, even though they spend a lot of time enjoying themselves with their loved ones because they’re essentially unhappy for approximately 40 hours per week. As Steve Jobs says, “the only way to do great work is to love what you do.”

Living to Work

Living to work may be the opposite of working to live, but it’s at no means any healthier! Living to work people are those whose lives centre around their work; achievements in their career and doing what they love for a living is a significant source of satisfaction in their lives. These people often see their job as their main priority, and unfortunately, push their personal life to the back of their mind. 

People who live to work are diligent and hardworking, and take pride in their role. They enjoy the benefits of promotions and growing business, but often prefer the satisfaction of climbing the career ladder than the money going into their pockets.

Working to live and living to work have their downsides. People who work to live spend a large portion of their week unhappy because they are not passionate about their work, and they ‘live for the weekends’. Whereas people who live to work often become consumed by their work, which threatens their work-life balance. Usually, this is the case for business owners, as they have such a significant responsibility in managing their company.

Business owners are a lot more susceptible to living to work. Because they are so passionate about their business venture, they live, breathe and sleep their work- these are what we really call ‘workaholics’.

Living to Work and Live?

Although it is useful to admit if you currently live to work or work to live, things do not necessarily have to stay that way! You don’t have to choose one or the other; it is possible to love your work and maintain a balanced home and work life with plenty of time for your family and company. 

There are some ways in which you can begin to implement this strategy. As a business owner, taking some time to identify goals you want to achieve in life allows you to take a step back and appreciate life outside of work. Usually, this could be something as simple as wanting to visit a particular place or as big as starting or expanding your family. Setting goals in your home life leaves you space to grow outside of your career too; leading to a better home-life balance.

All About Balance

We are placing more and more emphasis on this work-life balance in recent years, and it seems to be the key to finding a happy balance between working and living. Keeping work at work is one of the most obvious, and yet one of the hardest steps to maintaining a better work-life balance. Did you know that we take 26% of our work home with us? This probably applies to most ‘live to work’ people!

By focusing on your work only in the office or your preferred working environment, you allow your mind to open up to your family when you arrive home. Having this time out of work prevents you from becoming consumed by your career, and it’ll also avoid causing issues at home with your significant other!

If you work from home, as an entrepreneur or freelancer, for instance, that home-work life balance has to be maintained in the same environment- although it’s in separate rooms, it can become more difficult to switch off knowing that your outstanding work is in the next room. If this is the case, moving your work elsewhere or leaving the house more for family-orientated activities would be your best bet at taking your mind off of work.  

So do you work to live or live to work? Our leadership program can help you maintain your work-life balance, whether you’re an office worker or a freelancer. It is a mindfulness leadership experience which helps you develop on your existing skills as well as encourage new skills through our leadership development programme. Mountain Summit includes team-building activities which ultimately boost productivity alongside your team, as well as expertly led workshops that give you the fundamentals to develop on a personal and professional level. 

This increased productivity and development will lead to having a better mindset, in which leaders can then encourage their employees to have. Because of this, business owners – as well as their workforce – can learn how to switch off and live to work and live. 

Join us at our business event in Wales, and we can help you gain better control over your business. Through new leadership skills and the ability to energise and empower your workforce. Click here for more information on our immersive event in Wales that will transform you.