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Will you be a worker or a laborer? 1 To be truly happy a person must feel both free and important. People are never happy if they feel compelled by society to do work they do not enjoy or if what they do enjoy is ignored by society as having no value or importance. In a society where slavery in the strict sense has been abolished the social indications around work the value of work and the salary have degraded many laborers into modern slaves "wage slaves". 2 People are considered laborers if their job has an adverse effect on them yet they feel compelled to continue working by the necessity of conforming to societal expectations and earning the revenue to support themselves and their families. The polar opposite of labor is play. When we play a game we enjoy what we are doing but it is a purely private pastime; society does not care when or whether we play. 3 Between labor and play stands work. People are labeled as workers if their personal interests coincide with the jobs society pays them to do; what is necessary labor from the point of view of society is voluntary play from the individual's personal point of view. Whether a job is to be designated as labor or work depends not on the job itself but on the tastes of the individual who undertakes it. The difference does not for example correlate with the difference between a manual and mental job or between jobs of low or high esteem; a gardener covered in dirt in a greenhouse may be a worker while a well-dressed city mayor may prove to be an unhappy laborer! 4 People's attitude toward their work determines everything. To workers leisure means simply the hours they need to relax and rest in order to work efficiently. Workers are therefore more prone to dedicate more time to working taking too little leisure rather than too much. To laborers on the other hand leisure means autonomy from compulsion so it is natural for them to imagine that the fewer hours they have to spend laboring and the more hours they have free for play the better. 5 Besides the mere hours spent in leisure workers and laborers differ in the amount of personal satisfaction they derive from their jobs. Workers who enjoy their jobs will be happier less stressed and generally more satisfied with their lives. They will also work with more diligence and precision because they have fostered a sense of personal pride in their jobs. On the other hand laborers whose sole incentive is earning their livelihood feel that the time they spend on the daily grind is wasted and doesn't contribute to their happiness. Instead of valuing all 24 hours of their day as enjoyable and productive hours they gauge only the time spent in leisure and play as meaningful. Unfortunately laborers are all too commonplace and only a small percentage of the population is in the lucky position of being workers. 6 In recent decades technological innovation and the division of labor have caused major economic changes by eliminating the need for special strength or skill in many fields and have turned many paid occupations with enjoyable work into boring labor. Increasing productivity with automated machines such as robots has reduced the number of necessary laboring hours. It is possible to imagine an upcoming society in which the majority of the population will have almost as much leisure time as in earlier times was enjoyed by the medieval aristocracy. The medieval aristocrats had an abundance of leisure time but often wasted it in trivial pursuit of games and fashion. Likewise modern-day laborers with too much leisure time may find it difficult to refrain from the addictive and trivial pursuits of celebrity gossip extravagant fashion and excessive video games and TV similar bad habits that waste valuable time. 7 However it's not necessary to take such a toxic attitude toward such a positive thing as leisure time. In fact in many countries people now use their leisure time to improve their minds and their working conditions to create a happier more contented life. Lifelong learning can make the difference between being bored unhappy laborers and workers who find meaning and joy in their employment and life. "Continuing education" or "experiential learning" can offer an array of classes from pleasant diversions such as sports art classes or music to leadership development advanced accounting skills or CAD (computer-aided design) to name only a few. 8 Whatever the job people who enjoy their work find time passes quickly. They hurl their passion into their work be it physical like the work of a smith or more mental like that of a scientist or an artist. Even purely mental work can suffice as an outlet as aptly expressed by the phrase "sinking one's teeth into a problem". 9 Eventually everyone has to find a job and earn a living. Laborers are slaving away at a job they don't enjoy for a small monetary reward waiting all day until they go home and play. But while laborers are counting down the hours workers are energized and focused taking optimum pleasure in the task at hand. By choosing a job that is both useful to society and personally fulfilling workers maintain a simultaneous sense of purpose and enthusiasm that improves their whole lives. So in the end whatever job you choose you must contend with this essential question: Will you be a laborer or a worker? 一个人要想真正快乐，必须觉得自己既自由又重要。如果觉得自己是受社会逼迫而做自己不喜欢的工作，或者自己喜欢的工作被认为没价值或不重要而遭社会忽视，那他绝不会快乐。在一个奴隶制度严格说来已经被废除的社会里，工作的社会含义、工作的价值和薪水，已经把许多劳役者降格为现代奴隶——“薪奴”。 如果人们的工作对自己有负面的影响，但为了遵从社会的期望或者挣钱养家糊口而被迫必须继续工作，那么他们就被认为是劳役者。劳役的对立面是玩乐。当我们玩游戏时，我们很享受正在做的事情，但这仅仅是个人娱乐。社会对我们何时玩乐或者是否玩乐并不关心。 处于劳役和玩乐之间的就是工作。如果人们的个人兴趣跟社会付酬让他们做的工作相吻合，他们就被称为工作者。社会上看来一定是苦工的事情对个人来说却是自在的玩乐活动。一份活到底应定为工作还是劳役并不取决于其本身，而是承担这份活的个人感受。比如，二者的区别与是体力活还是脑力活或尊严的高低没有关联。温室里满身尘土的园丁可能是工作者，而衣冠楚楚的市长则可能是一个不开心的劳役者！ 人们对自己工作的态度决定了一切。对工作者而言，闲暇只是为了更有效地工作而需要放松休息的时间。因此，工作者更倾向于投入更多的时间工作，而花在休闲上的时间并非很多，而是很少。而对劳役者而言，休闲意味着从被迫状态中得到自主。因此，他们自然会想，花在劳作上的时间越少，自在玩乐的时间越多，则越好。 除了花在闲暇上的时间不同，工作者和劳役者的区别还在于他们从工作中获得的个人满足感不同。工作者喜欢自己的工作，感觉更快乐，更轻松，通常对自己的生活更满意。他们工作起来也会更勤奋，更精细，因为他们对自己的工作已经产生了一种自豪感。相反，由于劳役者的唯一动力是挣生活费，他们觉得每天花在苦差上的时间是一种浪费，不会让自己快乐。他们不把每天的24小时都当作愉快有用的时光，认为只有花在休闲娱乐上的时间才是有意义的。不幸的是，劳役者太常见了，只有一小部分人能有幸成为工作者。 近几十年，技术创新和劳动分工使许多领域不再需要专长或特殊技能，导致了重大经济变革，把许多可以通过开心工作来挣钱的职业变成了枯燥的劳役。随着自动化机器如机器人的使用，日益提高的生产力减少了必要的劳作时间。可以想象，在即将到来的社会中，大多数人会拥有同早期中世纪贵族一样多的闲暇时间。中世纪贵族有大量的闲暇时间，但却往往耗费在玩游戏和对时尚的无聊追求上。同样，有太多闲暇时间的现代劳役者们会觉得很难摆脱那些无聊又易上瘾的追求，像名人八卦、奢华时尚、过度电子游戏和电视等诸如此类浪费宝贵时间的坏习惯。 不过，没必要对休闲这种正面的事情采取如此否定的态度。事实上，目前在很多国家，人们利用闲暇时间去提高认识，改善工作环境，以创造更快乐安逸的生活。终身学习对做一个乏味不开心的劳役者，还是成为一个从职业和生活中发现意义和乐趣的工作者有重要的影响。“继续教育”或“体验学习”能提供一系列课程，略举几例，如从运动、艺术或音乐等休闲娱乐课程到领导力拓展、高级会计或CAD（计算机辅助设计）等。 不管是什么工作，喜欢自己工作的人总发现时间过得飞快。不管是铁匠的体力活，还是像科学家或艺术家从事的偏脑力的活，他们在工作中都会投入激情。即便是纯脑力活也足以让他们挥洒激情，恰如短语表达的那样，“全身心投入问题中”。 最终，每个人都得找一份工作谋生。劳役者仅为了一点金钱报酬，像奴隶一样做自己并不喜欢的工作，一天到晚等着回家玩乐。但是当劳役者倒数着时间之时，工作者则干劲十足，全神贯注，从手头的任务中享受到最大的快乐。他们通过选择一份有益社会、成就自我的工作，怀揣着一种使命感和热情，提升了自己的整个生活。因此到头来，不管你选择什么工作，都必须面对这个根本问题:“你想做一名劳役者还是工作者？” |
