Is it a Job, a Charity, or a Hobby?
Over the last few days, this has been on my mind. When does a hobby become a job and vice versa? We have all heard of the cliché - if you love your job, you'll never have to work another day!
Image source: Unsplash.com - magnet.me
Personally, that sounds ridiculous though I do admit that there's an element of truth to it. Why is it ridiculous and still has an element of truth?
There's always a threshold of how much you can accept or even enjoy something. I stay away from the word 'love' because I found that there are no less than four types of 'love' and as many as eight types that I know of. We can debate on the meaning of 'love your job' until the cow comes home and may not reach a consensus. In my opinion, love is too strong a word to be used on something like a job. Like, enjoy - yes. Love, no.
Here's my argument, if you love your job so much that it makes you feel you never have to work another day, then let me ask you this question - since you "love" it so much, would you do it for free? Okay, if that sounded a little extreme, how about this? Would you work this job the rest of your life without a raise? I guess not.
Despite that, I do believe there's an element of truth to that cliché. If you really think about it, I'm sure you'll agree that it is undeniably better to have a job you enjoy so much that it felt like you are not working at all. It's an event or activity that you look forward to every day. A much better option than dreading to go to work. Trust me, I've experienced that.
My Reflection
I'll do my best to break down my thought process. The thoughts that started this reflection and that started this article. Without further ado, let's start.
1. The trigger
This was the trigger that got me thinking about the above. Actually, two activities started this train of thought.
The first one was my recent taking up blockchain games and various exciting blockchain projects. Cyberspace has no lack of information and articles about play-to-earn, free-to-play, pay-to-earn, mining, farming, faucets, new blockchain projects, etc. Most if not all allude to the potential to generate a passive income.
Source Image: Unsplash.com - Sharon McCutcheon
Whether a passive income is achievable or not, these games and projects do take up a big chunk of your life. Total immersion can easily take up 8 to 10 hours or your day.
Regardless, this has gotten me thinking - is this a job, or is this a hobby? This being a job is not that far-fetched. I've read there are individuals as well as families playing games and earning a livelihood for just doing that. The pandemic coupled with enabling technologies has presented a paradigm shift in how we look at jobs and how we interact.
2. The reality
Image Source: Unsplash.com - Markus Spiske
Yes, I admit. I enjoyed this routine. Spending time doing research, doing what I'm supposed to do in these games and projects to expand my "net worth" is truly very engaging. Some have communities that will go out of the way to help you.
It has been addictively alluring, so much so that I was thinking how nice it would be if this was my job. To be honest, though I enjoyed (read 'love') it so much, I wouldn't do it if the rewards were purely derived from satisfaction in playing and participating in these projects. If there were no financial rewards (though unrealized), I wouldn't be investing my time in them. At least not a big chunk of my life, anyway.
3. The Motivation
Along the same line of argument as the previous paragraph, I'd started writing on and off for about a year. It is a hit and miss in this endeavor. Truth be told, writing is not my strength. Hated it in school and this feeling hasn't changed much since then.
Words do not flow naturally for me. I'm a more contemplative person. More times than I can recall, ideas and thoughts flowed when I let my mind daydream but when it was time to sit down and put those thoughts into words, everything vanished into thin air. Poof! All gone. I'm stuck with the dreaded writer's block and believe me, it is a thick block. Words don't come easy to me. There was a song about that too. It's simply called - Words. Well, not exactly related to my point, but that's exactly my point. Lol.
Image Source: Unsplash.com - Brett Jordan
So, when I did hit the mental jackpot with an article and it trended, for a while at least, I was ecstatic. Could the next one be a blockbuster sequel? Unfortunately, it usually isn't and that's the case with my follow-up article. Lol. Such is life.
Guess what? This was the second activity that started the "if you love your job" thoughts. If writing was my job - do I love my job so much that I'll never have to work another day? It didn't take long for me to answer that. It's a big 'No'! Work is work and a job is a job no matter how much you love it. It's a transaction. You are selling your skill, knowledge, and time in return for a financial reward.
Remember I mentioned earlier in this article the word 'threshold'? I strongly believe that there's a threshold to everything, however good. One cannot escape from the law of diminishing return. The question to ask is what do you do when you reach this threshold. You will reach it. I did.
I have to take a closer look at why I write. Do I write to earn? Do I write to share? Do I write to get approval? Do I write to compile my ideas and/or thoughts? Or are they all of the above? A monkey tapping at the keyboard does not give a hoot about the above. But you and I, we are different - we think, therefore we are. What we think is important and sometimes what other think molds what we think.
My Final Thoughts (for now)
I have come to the conclusion that I write to improve myself. Over these past few months, I have noticed improvements in my writing. In spite of the occasional writer's block, it has become easier to write.
Sometimes, I'm happy to write. These are the times I'm inspired and where the ideas just flowed. Sometimes I write to be happy. These are the times where I disciplined myself to write. The encouragements received from my readers and fellow writers nudge me to be persistent and continue to write. It's strange to say this but writing has become an acquired love, if there's such a term.
To summarize, I'm happy to write but I don't derive my joy from writing. That's a topic for another article.
Header Image Source: Unsplash.com - Aaron Burden
For someone who does not derive joy from writing... to produce such lengthy articles, who could tell? well, as the saying goes, the more you write, the better you get. Hope that when words flow freer, you will get that occasional joy from writing.