Work Making A Living & Making A Life

We all work for a living. But what does it really mean to us?

Here's the most revealing look at the subject since Studs Turkel's classic Working.

Why do so few of us claim to enjoy our work when studies tell us otherwise?

Are you too ambitious -- or not ambitious enough?

Where do you draw the line -- if any -- between your professional and personal selves?

What aspects of your job make you happy?

With interviews, anecdotes, and a dose of good humor, Joshua Halberstam offers a unique new look at the age-old activity that consumes most of our life's waking hours. With a philosopher's perspective, he examines what it is that we find fulfilling or frustrating about our jobs. This thoughtful and surprising exploration of the subtle balance between making a living and making a life will inspire anyone seeking more rewards and fulfillment in their own working experience.

With interviews, anecdotes, and a dose of good humor, Halberstam offers a unique new look at work, the age-old activity that consumes most of life's waking hours.

The philosophers of ancient Greece viewed it as demeaning, while Asian traditions venerated it. Protestantism cemented it as the foundational ethos of modern capitalism--though the Bible portrays it as both a glorification of God and a punishment. With this long history of mixed messages, it's no wonder many of us feel ambivalent about the activity that consumes most of our life's waking hours--in one loaded word, work.
With interviews, case studies, anecdotes, and a dose of good humor, Joshua Halberstam explores the subtle balance between making a living and making a life--posing such probing questions as: Why do so few of us claim to enjoy our work when studies tell us otherwise? Are you too ambitious or not ambitious enough? Where do you draw the line--if any--between your professional and personal selves? What aspects of your job make you happy? Thoughtful, surprising, and inspiring, this is a unique look at an age-old topic--and a valuable benefit for anyone seeking more rewards and fulfillment in their own working life.
-In this thoughtful, comprehensive, and profound work, Joshua Halberstam tells us how we can become entrepreneurs of our own careers in order to fully live our values in all aspects of our lives.---James A. Autry, author of Love and Profit: The Art of Caring Leadership