Weekend Reading: Devote Yourself to the Cause of Your Life
This article appears as part of Casey Weade's Weekend Reading for Retirees series. Every Friday, Casey highlights four hand-picked articles on trending retirement topics and delivers them straight to your email inbox. Get on the list here.
You may have found, like many, that the COVID-19 pandemic provided an array of realizations. For some, it was a retirement “test drive.” For others, it might have been an opportunity to pick up a new hobby/passion, a time to reevaluate their career or like author Evan Armstrong, a period of learning to slow down.
READ THE ARTICLEMeaning in the menial: During the pandemic, Armstrong reinvented himself as a writer. Not only that, but he found contentment in writing despite the absence of financial rewards. He discovered a better way of working meant finding meaning in daily tasks, rather than solely pursuing productivity. Instead of falling into “hustle culture,” Armstrong now values purpose over optimization; finding meaning in all aspects of life, and aligning them with his “why.”
You can chase a life of minimal work, but if you lack purpose, you won’t find happiness. So ask yourself: What daily tasks do you have that are void of joy? Is it possible to change them, or are there ways you can infuse them with more meaning?