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Tommy Jennings's avatar

My best days at work are those when I am most productive. I celebrate at home after one of those days with a nice G & T (yes- boomer. yes - busted). Those days when I don't get as much done as I should (based on my standard), I return home regretting the missed opportunities. Are happiness and satisfaction the same? Nope. But for me, satisfaction creates happiness. Happiness creates gin and tonics.

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Irene Goodman's avatar

The Latin-based cultures such as Italy have it right. Dolce far niente doesn't mean sitting and staring at a wall all day. It doesn't literally mean nothing. It means whiling away the hours in a cafe with a friend. It means showing up somewhere for a brief errand, and you end up spending the whole afternoon there doing something else because it was appealing. It means prioritizing happiness and seeing it as a necessary and important part of life. We live in a Puritanically based society where work and gain are seen as the most important thing. And if work makes you happy, go for it. But a lot of things can make you happy. Seize those moments and run with them. Happiness is what life should be about. I happen to love my work, but I love a lot of other things too. No one ever said on their deathbed "I should have spend more time in the office."

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