Do you work to live, or live to work?

I’m often asked why I don’t open the shop more?

Comments come in like;  “Oh I would visit if you was open more”, “you’re always closed”, “don’t you want to earn more money”…. etc etc etc.

I work to live… simple as that… whereas in the past I lived to work and it almost killed me! 

Do you know the difference between these two statements above?

Well I’ll share the definitions I found to describe them online  

Working to live means that work is not your top priority. It is working to the level/time that you earn enough to support yourself and your family. Working to live is choosing a comfortable work placement, rather than hard work, long hours, and always going the extra mile to maybe advance your business or career.

Living to work people are those whose lives centre around their work; achievements in their career and doing what they love for a living is a significant source of satisfaction in their lives. These people often see their job as their main priority, and unfortunately, push their personal life to the back of their mind.

So which one are you? So in theory I’m a bit of both, as I do love my job, I get great satisfaction in doing what I do, and making others happy, but, push it too far, I then make my family unhappy. So it’s about finding a balance in life, and sticking to it. 

I know it’s hard at the moment, especially with bills going up, food and essentials increasing each day, which can lead to us switching our mind set to work work work more hours to survive. But if we all looked at our monthly financials and see where cuts can be made, it can mean more hours at home, rather than stuck at the job where in reality the extra hours you may end up doing, the government take a huge piece of it. 

I review our bills every 3 months now, and set out a budget of spend. I now plan our holidays/major days out at the start of the year, giving myself a realistic budget to work off. It’s one reason I set up my tiktok and Instagram travel/days out pages, to share some of the things I do. (images below)

My own personal story is that I run myself mentally and physically into the ground several years ago! I wanted to end my life at one point, and that is a dark and isolated world to be in. I was drinking lots, I then went onto antidepressants, I started vaping, and I was in menopause, my life felt crap! 

I was on this rollercoaster of a ride, which I struggled to get off, I was pushed and pushed, until I was eventually derailed, and it was messy!

I thought I had to be open every day, I thought the longer and harder I worked, the more money I would have, and the happier I would be… how wrong I was.

So this is a message to everyone who may need to hear it today…. Be realistic with what you need to live… and come up with a financial plan that supports you to have more freedom, time off with friends, and family. Life is very short, live it, don’t work it!!

Big hugs, and Happy Saturday. 

Sarah xx