#32: Beauty of Enough

#lifebalance #career #selfperception #identity #contentment

Aug 18, 2023

👋 Welcome to this week's Pursuit. My name is Amir, and each week I go over 10 hours of content in pursuit of living a meaningful, fulfilling and balanced life. I'm grateful to share my findings with you and hope I can have a tiny impact on your life. Subscribe now if you haven't already!

This week’s discovery:

😌 The Good Enough Job
👵🏼 The Illusion of Retirement
🪞 The Power of Self-Perception
🌊 Trusting Your Own Flow
🤹🏼 Diversify Your Identity Beyond Work
🗒️ A Quote I'm Pondering On
🎵 Music I'm Listening To

😌 The Good Enough Job

The concept of "Good Enough" has become a primary source of energy for me when I feel that I am stretching myself too thin in a single dimension of my life. I believe that living a well-balanced life creates a much richer experience of our time on this planet and will make us more satisfied with our lives when it is time to depart.

If you're in the process of job seeking, it's important to define what "good enough" means to you. People often idolize the idea of a perfect or dream job that will never be frustrating or make them sad. However, this mentality can lead to disappointment and a sense of inadequacy. Instead, consider what sufficiency means to you. Perhaps it's a job that pays a certain wage, has a set schedule, or allows you to pursue your passions outside of work. On the other hand, beware of falling into the trap of workism, which is treating work like a religion or a source of identity and purpose. While it's important to find meaning in what you do, putting too much emphasis on work can lead to an extremely high standard that can't always be met. Additionally, if your job is the sole source of your identity and purpose, losing your job can shatter your sense of self. Remember that your job is a part of who you are, but it doesn't define you completely.

🎧 4-min

👵🏼 The Illusion of Retirement

If you're like many professionals, you may have found yourself constantly deferring your personal goals and dreams in favor of work. You tell yourself that you'll have more time to pursue these things once you retire, but the truth is that retirement may not be as glamorous as you imagine. A recent report by the Wall Street Journal found that retirees spend an average of four and a half hours a day watching TV. So why wait until you're 70 to start living the life you want? Embrace the present and make time for the things that matter to you now. Never forget that time is your most valuable asset. Spend it wisely and intentionally. Don't let blind ambition and the pursuit of more rob you of the beauty of enough.

🎧 2-min

🪞 The Power of Self-Perception

You are the story you tell yourself. If you believe that you have no chance of being a writer, a designer, or an entrepreneur because none of the dots in your past add up, then of course you have no real shot at being one. The story you tell yourself either opens doors or closes doors. The world is not asking you to be realistic about how you’ll do the work. The world is asking for your imagination and your creativity—to build bridges from here to there. Being realistic about your prospects will actually be unhelpful. You have to psyche yourself up. You are what you believe yourself to be. One day your self-delusions will catch up with you. Through practice, it becomes real.

📖 6-min

🌊 Trusting Your Own Flow

Leaning into both consistency and flexibility is part of threading our humanity into our work, into what we do. Leaning into both structure and space is part of letting ourselves be ever-changing people, and letting those changes be woven into what, and how, we share. The way we do things isn’t a problem unless we’re doing things the way someone else does instead of doing what actually works for us.

📖 3-min

🤹🏼 Diversify Your Identity Beyond Work

While it's tempting to put all your passion and energy into your job, this approach can be risky. If your job is your primary source of identity and meaning, losing your job can leave you feeling lost. It can also create unrealistic expectations about what a job can deliver. Instead, try carving out time for active forms of leisure. This can take many forms, such as investing in your relationships, finding a hobby that brings you joy, or joining a community group. By diversifying your identity, you'll cultivate different sides of yourself, which can make you more resilient and creative. It also allows you to be a more well-rounded person and a better friend or family member. Finding a balance between work and other areas of life is key to overall well-being.

🎧 11-min