Why you should work 90+ hours a week, too

When I started my career as a trader on Wall Street several years ago, I remember how my mother reacted when she heard I was at times working 80+ hours a week. Raised old-school on a farm and being a very spiritually and happiness-seeking woman, she was appalled and feared for my sanity and overall health.
In time, it turned out her fears weren’t necessarily misplaced. After several years I found myself being miserable and very much burned out. So I quit.
However, since I left Wall Street and switched careers into programming I have come to realize and appreciate that there are 80 hour work-weeks and … 80 hour work-weeks. Work, as I know now, is not created equal.
There is a difference! And it makes all the difference!
Today, I am actually ‘working’ more hours than ever in my life but I am happier and more fulfilled than ever! How is that possible?
The reason for this is that most people are confused about what ‘work’ really is.
Most people you’ll meet are content with clocking in and clocking out at their job. They then go on to spend the rest of their day trying to minimize how much they have to use their brain. Usually, any time after work is dedicated to social media, Netflix, the bars, or video games.
Anything that requires thought, effort, or intellectual energy they will call ‘work’.
These people may be your best friends, your family, or roommates. While their ways of thinking doesn’t make them bad people, you need to be aware that their mindset about ‘work’ can have a large influence on how you see yourself and think about how you should be spending your time.
Example: It’s Friday night and your friends are all getting ready to go to the bars. Meanwhile you’ve been trying all week to find some time to start that new online-course about UX Design because you’re unhappy in your current job and know that being a designer is really what you should be doing. So you decide to stay in to learn and grow. But next thing you know your friends are calling you and telling you to stop being lame and to stop ‘working’ so hard. Fast forward 16 hours and you’re slowly rolling out of bed with a massive hangover and you’ve forgotten all about the online course.
If this sounds familiar to you, think about the following:
If you consider time invested towards self-development, reading non-fiction (or even fiction), or learning another language ‘WORK’ then you need to retrain your mind to see learning and growing not as a chore but as a fulfilling endeavor you need to protect and prioritize.
Unlike in college where you had to learn what your teacher told you to or at your office where there’s no way around doing what you have to, the world is your oyster… today. Right now you can go out and only chase the things that interest you and fulfill your intellectual curiosity. It’s awesome!
If you’re working a 40-hour week then you have at least 50 hours a week to pursue those intellectual curiosities, develop yourself further, and through your actions inspire others around you to become better versions of themselves. But you have to be diligent and choose that path proactively!
What you will notice by investing more time into developing yourself is that you stop caring about the fact that you can’t talk about every Netflix show with your colleagues. You will care less about going out and dropping $100 on a round of shots. It may be hard in the beginning but after a while you will notice a fundamental change in your cognitive abilities in whatever field you’ve been applying your time and you’ll feel empowered and infinitely more fulfilled.
As the legendary Tony Robbins once said and continues to preach:
Progress equals happiness. Even if you’re not where you want to be yet. If you’re on the road, if you’re improving, if you’re making progress, you’re gonna love it. You’re gonna feel alive. — Tony Robbins
So go out there and start ‘working’ 90+ hours a week. You’ll be happier than ever, I promise!
