THE OPEN MIND COLLECTION

Work, Passion, Ambition

"Work is routine. It's doing the same task over and over again until it becomes like...a reflex."

"For me, work is coming up with ideas, new ideas, all the time...coz an idea is half of the work done. I leave to others the execution of this idea."

"And when it comes to passion, passion is character. It's personality. It's identity. It's lifestyle. Passion is...you."

"But ambition is like a pill that cures, but becomes deadly when one overdoses. It becomes an obsession, an addiction. It becomes a poison...or a cancer that grows deep within."

"True, ambition on its own is not bad, but when it does grow to over-ambition...it consumes. It's like a lion cub you nurture from its early days until it grows to become an adult lion and then it devours you."

As conversations continue everyday amongst young people on where to draw the line between work and workaholicism, passion and obsession, ambition and over-ambition productive time is always lost. "Are these terms even different?" Most of the time if we put intentions into the picture they eliminate that line from the equation. Workaholicism, obsession and over-ambition give birth to themselves as they work hand in hand just as work, passion and ambition do.

Now if you want to know the beauty of dry land, drown yourself in the ocean. What does this mean? Do work for the sake of merely earning a living to make ends meet and you won't enjoy it. In fact, you won't do it to the best of your abilities. This is when work becomes a routine and history repeats itself daily at the workplace. You become a programmed machine and not a human being unlike when you stand on your own dry land of passion and interest and do...you; you...as in what you love to do; that which defines...you.

This is one factor distinguishing the successful from the not-so-successful. It's an issue of identity. "Don't lose yourself in what you do" is what a rich man on his death bed told his son. "Instead, find yourself in whatever you do otherwise it's not worth doing."

When coming back to the issue of 'work is a routine', it's even a boring thing to say, whatmore making it one. "Work is an idea. If you go to work daily and yet not employing new ideas daily as the world changes daily, then you're not working. You're wasting precious life-time."

Now this is success..., solving a problem, not trying to make a lot of money. This is the line-breaker..., intentions. Many try to make money, many fail. Few solve problems, few succeed. Make money by meeting a need in society and solving a problem.

"Another question is this, why should one work at all?"

"Because we've been cursed to and anyone who will not work shall not eat..., but our Creator is faithful. He's given us gifts and interests according to our abilities. He's given us the will to love the things we want to do in life..., but He's given us the free-will to choose whether to accept that will to love the things we should do in life or not. Many choose not to. They sacrifice what they have a passion for only to pursue that which they think gives them...success. But don't let your balance determine your success. Your love of doing that 'something' you love...is success enough whether it brings you wealth or not."

But even the place of work should be a place of I'm-doing-what-I-love-to-do. "What do you like about your workplace?"

"Uhm, I don't know. Nothing, I guess."

"What would you like your workplace to be like, then?"

"Let me think. Uhm, perhaps the kind I'd like to bring my children to. The kind they would admire and wish to work in when they grow up; a family-friendly environment; a fun, interesting, few-hours-work kind of place. A place where every employee is happy and efficient because he or she gets enough time to rest and be with family; in short, a place which does not rob workers of their family time and social life."

"That seems to be a utopia of a workplace."

"It is possible to achieve such if the bosses would provide the kind of work environment for their employees that they themselves would prefer to work in if they were in the shoes of their employees. But even the bosses themselves don't mind working in harsh environments because they do what they don't enjoy doing. It's all for money. The one who loves his work creates a more enjoyable environment for himself and the people around him. That's just the way it is, but of course there're always exceptions."

The duty of the human race is to create, re-create and simplify that which is uncreated, distorted and complex and work is that process, difficult or not, which is meant to produce an easiness of things. So then, if it does not achieve such, it becomes like heavy cargo of supplies on a sinking ship. It no longer serves its purpose.