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How work kills us

economist.com

1–10 of 69 posts

Re: How work kills us

#2
Work may kill us, but I've also seen enough people die shortly after retirement to be a bit suspicious. It really depends on how much your career is a part of your identity.

Re: How work kills us

#3
Let me tell you the secret - life as a process is killing you every moment. One can not exist without another. Jobs is just something we chose to spent our short time on, as well as few other things.

Re: How work kills us

#4
post #2

Work may kill us, but I've also seen enough people die shortly after retirement to be a bit suspicious. It really depends on how much your career is a part of your identity.

I am suspicious too, I had not thought about identity yet but linked it with change in lifestyle. I have seen several men die 1 - 2 yrs after retirement.

I know/have known men who never really retired, they just scaled back operations bit by bit. Like my dentist now at 71 scaled back to 3 days/week. Why he does it? "Because I like it".

Or people who have shifted ownership of the business to their sons, but are still around some days of the week.

Re: How work kills us

#5
post #3

Let me tell you the secret - life as a process is killing you every moment. One can not exist without another. Jobs is just something we chose to spent our short time on, as well as few other things.

Great secret. Thanks. Please RTFA.

Also most people do not choose to do jobs, they have to do jobs.

Re: How work kills us

#6
Being unemployed might kill us even more. I'm not sure I understand the argument here.

In Finnish there is a idiom_ "People have died at home as well" that captures this idea that doing stuff away from home is not necessary less safe than being at home - you can die at home as well.

Re: How work kills us

#7
I had dinner last year with Professor Pfeffers along with some other GSB Alumni.

This was just before his book went to print, but it was the topic of conversation.

He makes some solid points.

It’s pretty shocking, but understandable, since the impact on individuals, groups, and society isn’t like a physical workplace injury that has cause/effect immediacy.

Re: How work kills us

#8
"The 19th-century liberals reformed the workplace and changed capitalism to save it."

This made me laugh. Which liberals? Karl Marx?

Re: How work kills us

#9
post #3

Let me tell you the secret - life as a process is killing you every moment. One can not exist without another. Jobs is just something we chose to spent our short time on, as well as few other things.

We choose to spend our time working?

Only because there is no other reasonable option.

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