19 Comments
User's avatar
Joel Folgner -Fresh From Cache's avatar

Wow yeah... I never really thought about enjoyment and leisure not really being the same thing.

I can completely relate with "working" on a Sunday. I did the same thing! And I did find enjoyment in it. It feels nice to use some unstructured time to get ahead.

I'm definitely going to keep this in mind going forward. Great post!

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

Thank you! I never really thought about it before either, but suddenly there I was, questioning one of my long-held beliefs, and realizing that the foundation I’d built it on was poor.

Joel Folgner -Fresh From Cache's avatar

Well I'm glad you did, because now I'm going to be thinking about it when it comes to free time!

Joy Wiggs | Joy for Sales's avatar

Same here. I never thought of the difference before it was said here. It took me a long time to embrace that my "enjoyment" outside of my corporate role is more work (aka entrepreneurship).

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

Yeah, there’s so much I do at work that I love. But I confused that, because it was a “job” and I was not supposed to like my job. I was “supposed” to only like leisure activities. Once I realized that there was more than one way to have fun, it changed my perspective about my work.

Joel Folgner -Fresh From Cache's avatar

I suppose one could call themself lucky if they DO enjoy and find their job fun. Not everybody can say that lol.

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

It’s true. There’s a lot of things I don’t like about this job, but the work typically isn’t one of them.

Joel Folgner -Fresh From Cache's avatar

I always say I hate the job part of my work lol.

Joel Folgner -Fresh From Cache's avatar

Yes exactly! A good reminder for people like us. Get some rest! Lol

Jess Lester | Well Spent's avatar

I've always been very ambitious and give 100% to my job, but after experiencing burnout years ago I grew very cautious of giving too much to an employer or pushing myself too hard to build something outside of work. But I really like building stuff!

This became so clear to me after I had my daughter and my free/personal time was erased for a while. I realized how much I enjoy having a project and how it really fills my cup.

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

I think I just need to be kind to myself. There was a time that having an employer was what I needed - and it’s ok to admit that and admit I enjoyed the work. There is nothing wrong with that. But my life is different now, and I crave more. I want the work, but I also want the freedom. That’s what I’m working towards now.

John Eli | Entre Mundos ☕️🌶️'s avatar

I love learning and creating. I spend a good portion of my evenings and my weekends doing just that. It’s because I enjoy it. I throw in occasional hikes and socializing too, but I want to invest my time in the things that I love.

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

I think it’s probably just important that we understand how we’re spending out time. I love to read, but even with non-fiction, it always felt like a chore because it wasn’t leisurely. But now I realize that if I’m happy doing it, what does it matter?

Anne ✨'s avatar

Making lists and charts and sorting things 😋

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

Some of my favorite things to do!

Rouleffe's avatar

we almost every time, tell ourselves stories isn't it? :-D

Alexandra Bianco's avatar

Yeah -the stories we tell ourselves are so misleading. It’s amazing how long we can go before we wake up.

Shilla A. J.'s avatar

It’s crazy how I actually enjoyed working on my off days. I recently quit my job due to my mental health, but I remember sitting at home, not surrounded by my boss’s questions and nags, and just enjoying being good at what I did.

Thank you for writing this! 🤍