How to Find Fulfilling Work (The School of Life)

A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labour and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To hims

‘Where the needs of the world and your talents cross, there lies your vocation.’

that following our values, passions and talents is the most likely way to satisfy our hunger for fulfilment.

We can easily find ourselves pursuing a career that society considers prestigious, but which we are not intrinsically devoted to ourselves – one that does not fulfil us on a day-to-day basis.

Martin Seligman calls a ‘hedonic treadmill’: as we get richer and accumulate more material possessions, our expectations rise, so we work even harder to earn money to buy more consumer goods to boost our wellbeing, but then our expectations rise once more, and on it goes.

the feeling that we are respected by others for what we do and how we do it is one of the keys to having a meaningful career.