Importance of Work and Happiness

Published 05 Aug 2017

Happiness is defined as an emotional state that provides individuals a pleasant feeling, a sense of well-being, satisfaction and contentment. In psychology, happiness is believed to be the main point of our lives. People may aspire for different goals, and may differ in what they believe are the most important things in life. But beneath all the choices and the goals, happiness is at the bottom line. The attainment of these goals would ultimately create happy feelings. Simply put, happiness is important because it provides the fundamental incentive for living (Fordyce, 1990).

To work means to engage in a livelihood that requires the use of strength or faculties. On a large scale, a person who works becomes a productive citizen and contributes to the
strengthening of his community and nation. On a personal level, work provides the individual money that could be used to buy things, go on vacations, pay bills, rent and mortgage, and do
other things. Without money, people can’t do a lot. Additionally, work does not only provide financial rewards, it could also boost self-worth and self-confidence. Moreover, work
allows people to learn new skills and new things that would help them grow personally, socially, and intellectually.

There is though a difference between a happy worker and its opposite. The former creates a positive atmosphere around them, affecting their colleagues in a good way. These people are happy primarily because they love what they’re doing. On the other hand, the unhappy worker brings bad vibes and adversely affects his environment. This negativity could possibly be the result of a poor career choice.

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Difference Between Worker and Laborer When It Comes to Work and Play

A worker has a marketable skill and is generally confined to office work or non-manual labor, while a laborer is tasked to do unskilled physical work. To a worker, leisure is time spent away from work in order to relax and revive his enthusiasm, normally on a vacation to beaches or other places. When he gets back, the worker is often invigorated and works as efficiently as he can. To a laborer, leisure is simply the time spent not doing physical work. That means, the more hours a laborer has away from work, the more time he has for play.

Career Choices

By nature, men tend to choose things that would produce in themselves pleasant feelings.
It is considered not normal when a person would intentionally seek to make himself feel bad.
Following this basic human instinct, career choices should also be carefully selected based on a
person’s natural inclinations and not through the imposition of others. When a person is happy,
he tends to become more productive, creative, and genial. Workmates would not be subjected to
tantrums and other negative emotional displays. A worker who’s not happy with his career
would look at it with drudgery.

Students or out-of-school youths who are yet undecided whether they want to earn degrees should be properly motivated in order for them to be better off in the future. Without motivation, these people would settle for anything that would make them earn money, not realizing that time flies fast, and the next thing they’ll know, they’re stuck doing jobs that don’t make them happy. Parents in particular play a big part in motivating kids to get the proper
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education necessary to create meaningful careers later on. By adopting a consultative approach rather than a commanding attitude, parents could help guide their children create better choices for themselves. For the students, getting encouragement and being heard could greatly motivate them to realize their fullest potentials.

References

  • Fordyce, M. 1990. Human Happiness: Its Nature and Its Attainment. Retrieved November 25,2007
  • Regents of the University of Minnesota (2006, October 6). The Job Center: Knowing It’s Important. Retrieved November 25, 2007
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