MistyTiger wrote:Ever heard the saying, "Easy come, easy go"?
Sayings do not prove anything. Especially sayings that aren't about whether it's "better" to be stressed and work hard.
Why did I decide to go back to school and study Accounting, instead of moving to Vegas to gamble all day long? I had a vision of working my way to the top to learn the ropes of business or possibly becoming an accountant. Which road is funner? It looks more glamorous to dress up nicely and frequent casinos and it feels good to collect all those chips. I do not like to study and work through nights struggling with homework and terminology that is very technical and dry.
I'll guess because you didn't have money to lose, and because there are thousands of more enjoyable ways of spending money anyway than gambling, ie handing your money over. If you think it's "glamorous" to buy chips from casinos and then hand the chips back a few hours later, you have a poorly developed sense of glamour.
There might not be anything "better" about sweating and working hard, from a subjective standpoint. It is a lifestyle choice. In the long run though, which way is the more honest way to live?
It's perfectly "honest" to aim for a comfortable, easy life. It doesn't involve fooling anyone else, or stealign from them.
[quoteI want to feel like I earned my way in the world through pain and sweating.[/quote]
Pain and sweat do not 'earn' anything. Being of use to other people earns things. And that doesn't have to mean pain or sweat.
Can a body builder say that he/she earned their muscles from no sweating and only drinking health shakes? Nope. One example that comes to mind is Gyllenhaal's physical regime before he filmed Prince of Persia. He spent 8-9 months working out for hours each day to look that "shredded" as the fitness world calls it. There is no pill that can make anybody fit like that.
There's nothing 'earned' in bodybuilding at all. It's either for narcissism, or to get other people to find you attractive. Who cares how you do it? At most, only you.
As to toil, I do not know your ancestry, but I know that my ancestors must have toiled each day in the fields, they were farmers in China or other skilled workers. They were not rich and did not have the luxury to sit around doing nothing. They worked the ground to produce crops to feed their family and possibly sold some in town to earn some money.
That doesn't mean their life was "better" than yours. Do you think they would have wanted you to work even harder than them?
Studies show that people who work out in the fields are actually happier than those who live sedentary lifestyles. A part of it may have to do with the added oxygen intake that their brain gets from being outside and of course, the endorphins are flowing during all their exertions. Working hard is healthy and taking it too easy is not good, not only for the mind but for a person's total well-being.
Stress, which you want, is very bad for your health. If you're not getting enough oxygen indoors, open a window. Yes, a sedentary lifestyle is also bad for you. But you were advocating stress (unhealthy), toil and hard work, rather than an active routine.
Leisure is
enjoyable. Less stress feels better. These are good goals in life, both for yourself and those around you, rather than working yourself into stress, and admonishing others for not doing the same.