The premise of the question, as I understand is, “How can we enjoy getting up, getting dressed, driving to work, and working if our work allows our boss, leader, chief or CEO to make ‘a lot’ more than we do?”
It’s pretty clear he’s asking the question most working men never will when they are sitting at a red light. Going to do something – without questioning WHY – or if he even enjoys it all.
If you want to rip it apart and look for flaws, start with the word “ENJOY”.
You’re not even SUPPOSED to “enjoy” your job. That’s why it’s called a “JOB” (JUST OVER BROKE)
I was once asked in an interview what I LIKE to do. (in terms of work / tasks). I answered that it’s irrelevant. I asked the f~~~ing interviewer… would you ask a fireman what kind of fires he LIKES to put out? He’s not SUPPOSED to like it. He’s just supposed to DO it. That’s why it’s called a job. He’s paid to do it, and does it out of a sense of duty.
I am paid to “put out fires” of a different sort.
I do not “enjoy” waking up at 2AM to do this.
Even when I can invoice more for it.
The point is not to “enjoy” your job in the first place. You are paid to do it. Full stop. If you don’t like it, or it doesn’t pay enough, or you are unfulfilled and think that’s a reason NOT to do it….. QUIT.
If cleaning toilets for a living paid $X million a year,
I f~~~ing PROMISE you, I would “enjoy” it.
But nobody gets to say “let go of your bitterness” if I needed to clean toilets for $30K. I can be as bitter about that as I f~~~ing want. I am not required to be happy to clean s~~~ for $30K. So why do you think that a man who does it SHOULD be happy about it and enjoy it?
The answer is to let go of bitterness and envy and detach our individual happiness and satisfaction in life from what’s going on with someone else.
If I get up, get dressed and drive to work at a job I’m OK with for a salary of $50,000. Being p~~~ed off and upset because my CEO makes $1,000,000 is a s~~~ty way to live.
I don’t know how you can read that in what he’s asking. Or even imply such a thing.
Would you recommend the Phillipino workers who polish the screens on iPads for pennies a day let go of their “bitterness” when creating a $1200 something for Steve Jobs?
Who are you kidding here?
You’re not REQUIRED to “like” it.
You’re only required to DO IT.
That’s what a “job” is.
A job is only something you need to make enough money to do the things you want to do when you’re not working (for someone else). You don’t consider yourself unfortunate and are perfectly content doing that. But would your CEO be as content to work for YOU???? F~~~ no. He would think the same thing as Bukowski!!! And he would ask the same question.
He’s not going to be content to work for anyone else.
He would rather YOU work for HIM.
Are you going to say to him “let go of your bitterness, man”???
People are not required to like their jobs. They are only paid to do them.
• You need to be reminded of that.
• Employers need to be reminded of that.
• And every working man needs to be reminded of that.
So the Bukowski question asking “how can a man enjoy it” isn’t about “enjoying” it at all. It’s about asking himself the question. Most people don’t even ask themselves the question.
It’s not the answer that drives us.
It’s the QUESTION.
The Bukowski quote isn’t about HIM. He’s actually talking about people like YOU. People who are “happy” working for someone else for $50K. You think the question is about HIM. It’s not. It’s about you!
“How in the hell could a man enjoy being awakened by an alarm clock, leap out of bed, dress, force-feed, s~~~, p~~~, brush teeth and hair, and fight traffic to get to a place where essentially you made lots of money for somebody else and were asked to be grateful for the opportunity to do so?”
What you do every day, is his version of hell. If anything, he would look at YOU and say “how the f~~~ can you enjoy that? stop being someone else’s bitch”. You think you’re criticizing him… but he’s already way ahead of you and he’s criticizing you!
You’re just not “whining” about it.
But it would bug the s~~~ out of him.
What you “enjoy”…. he would HATE.
“You’re not supposed to ENJOY your job.”
I can agree with some of that. I’d replace ‘not supposed to’ with ‘don’t have to’. You don’t have to ‘enjoy’ your job, but you can. You do have to do your job, regardless of if you enjoy it or not. True. Either way, you are there because you choose to be. If it sucks too much, you can find something that sucks less. If you think all jobs suck, you can move to Alaska, live in the bush, hunt and fish for all of your own food and p~~~ and s~~~ in the woods and use leaves for toilet paper. That might offer new perspective on which jobs suck.
“Nobody ‘get’s’ to say ‘let go of your bitterness'”.
FALSE
We’re all men on this forum. We ‘get’ to say whatever we want to say. If you don’t like it you ‘get’ to tell me to go to hell, suck your dick, or cram it up my ass.
If someone wants to be bitter, that’s their business. If you have to clean toilets to get by, yes, you have a right to be as bitter as you want to be. You can die bitter if you want. If someone is happy being unhappy, that’s their business too. I don’t want to be bitter, and I’m happy being happy. I find the best way to do that is to accept responsibility for where I am at, and to not attach my happiness to what is going on in other people’s lives, or what I think they’re getting that I’m not. That means not attaching my happiness or my satisfaction with my life to what someone else makes.
Final Thought
I went Galt along time ago. If you have, let this passages serve as a reminder. If you haven’t this is from page 412 of my version of Atlas Shrugged.
Do not envy a worthless heir (or employer, boss, family member); his wealth is not yours and you would have done no better with it….
Money is your means of survival. If the source is corrupt, you have damned your own existence. Did you get your money… by doing work you despise for purchasers you scorn? If so, your money will not give you a moment’s or a penny’s worth of joy.
