Why do you work so hard??

I love this article from Mark Morford. In it he includes this statement: "Work really extra super hard and do nothing else but work and ignore your family and spend 14 hours a day at the office and make 300 grand a year that you never have time to spend, sublimate your soul to the corporate machine and enjoy a profound drinking problem and sporadic impotence and a nice 8BR mini-mansion you never spend any time in, and you and your shiny BMW 740i will get into heaven."

And near the end he adds: "But the truth is, God, the divine true spirit loves nothing more than to see you unhinge and take risk and invite regular, messy, dangerous upheaval. This is exactly the energy that thwarts the demons of stagnation and conservative rot and violent sanctimonious bloody Mel Gibson-y religion, one that would have all our work be aimed at continuously patching up our incessant potholes of ugly congenital guilt, as opposed to contributing to the ongoing orgiastic evolution of spirit."

It's a fantastic piece. Make sure you read it. Then when you're done and have had time to REALLY digest the thoughts behind that artice (and I mean REALLY digest it. Let it sink it. Give it some brain thought and let it sink into your soul) go and read this article. (Wait, you DID let the 1st article really sink in, right?) It talks about the fact that in 2004 the ratio of the AVERAGE ceo to the AVERAGE production worker is 431 to 1. Yup, 431 to 1, up from 301 to 1 the year prior. (Note, it IS down from the all-time high of 525 to 1 in 2001.) The most troubling thing is the trend. In 1990 the ratio was 107 to 1 and in 1982 (remember who was President then?) it was only 42 to 1. Even those #'s come into question, as it won't be until 2007 that the SEC will likely start forcing companies to reveal the true value of all the executive perks that they include in their pay packages. So it's likely that the numbers are even higher.

So the big impact is when you put both of these realities together; many of us are driven to work insanely long hours in pursuit of some elusive goal all the while REALLY benefitting an insanely small number of people who are the TRUE ones reaping the benefits of your time spent working. Think about that. Then go read the Mark Morford article again. :)

I'll leave you with a joke that puts this in a similar perspective.

An American businessman was at a pier in a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow-fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

The Mexican replied only a little while.

The American then asked why didn't he stay out longer and catch more fish?

The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs.

The American then asked the Mexican how he spent the rest of his time.

The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life, senor."

The American scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and, with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. "You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise."

The Mexican fisherman asked, "But senor, how long will this all take?"

To which the American replied, "15-20 years."

"But what then, senor?" asked the Mexican.

The American laughed, and said, "That's the best part! When the time is right, you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public. You'll become very rich, you would make millions!"

"Millions, senor?" replied the Mexican. "Then what?"

The American said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."