Poll: My professional philosophy is:
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Oct 7, 2007

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "My professional philosophy is:".

View the poll here

A forum topic will appear each time a new poll is run. For more information, see: http://proz.com/topic/33629


 
Eloïse Notet-Gilet
Eloïse Notet-Gilet
France
Local time: 16:01
Member (2005)
German to French
+ ...
Other Oct 7, 2007

I work to live but I love my work!

 
wierzbicki
wierzbicki
Poland
Local time: 16:01
live to work! :) Oct 7, 2007

I chose the 'live to work' option, because, to tell the truth, I thought nobody would choose it and my vote would be the only one
To anyone taking this poll seriously - count my vote for the opposite option


 
Beatriz Galiano (X)
Beatriz Galiano (X)
Argentina
Local time: 12:01
English to Spanish
+ ...
Work to live Oct 7, 2007

Although there have been times when I liked my job so much that if asked this question, I would have answered I live to work.

 
Heidi C
Heidi C  Identity Verified
Local time: 11:01
English to Spanish
+ ...
Other Oct 7, 2007

Work is part of my life, and I love my work.

But this does not mean my work is not a business: the fact that I love what I do, am good at it, it comes "easily" to me, and I would be willing to pay to be able to do it does not mean that I will sell myself short and not expect to be paid a decent professional rate!!!



 
John Cutler
John Cutler  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 16:01
Spanish to English
+ ...
Who am I kidding? Oct 7, 2007

I would say I only work to live. After all, there are always lots of bills to pay.

When I find myself working 6 or 7 days a week, every week though, I can't help but think that maybe I'm only fooling myself. Perhaps, it's the other way around...


 
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 16:01
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
I don't get it. Oct 7, 2007

(Voted Other) Honestly buddies, I never understood this "work to live, live to work" thing.

To me it is just one more puzzle each of us can assign a different meaning to. Each of us can find his/her own ratio of work and life so that none of us is allowed to say that we "live to work". We all of course "work to live", don't we? A person who works 4 hours a day and believes it's enough thinks it's "working for living". But people who work 70, 80, 90 or more hours a week believe that
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(Voted Other) Honestly buddies, I never understood this "work to live, live to work" thing.

To me it is just one more puzzle each of us can assign a different meaning to. Each of us can find his/her own ratio of work and life so that none of us is allowed to say that we "live to work". We all of course "work to live", don't we? A person who works 4 hours a day and believes it's enough thinks it's "working for living". But people who work 70, 80, 90 or more hours a week believe that it is also "working for living".

After hearing the sentence time and time again for decades (who started it in the first place? We should sue him/her for making us waste our time!), who would be so daring to say he/she lives to work?

In my humble opinion, this question is probably as useless as asking things like:
a) Do you believe in social justice? Yes / No
b) Do you agree with paying reasonable taxes to support universal education? Yes / No
c) Do you agree with adequate environmental measures to avoid global climate disasters? Yes / No

In our society you can't simply say "No" to any of these, the same way you cannot say happily you "live to work".

If you say "Yes" to any of the above, you are cheerfully accepted as a sensible person in all circles. If you say "No", you have to explain your definition of "social justice", "reasonable taxes" and "adequate environmental measures" for hours on end. And my experience shows that it will be a waste of time...
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Lia Fail (X)
Lia Fail (X)  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 16:01
Spanish to English
+ ...
hear hear! Oct 7, 2007

Tomás Cano Binder wrote:

In my humble opinion, this question is probably as useless as asking things like:
a) Do you believe in social justice? Yes / No etc



My first thought: what a pointlessly dichotomous/binary question, life just isn't that simple.

Thanks God for Tomás and coherent arguments:-)

If we don't have work to shape our days we have shapeless days and so need to find something else to "shape" our days ...and how many of us have that luxury. I've always thought about lady Di and other celebrities that spend their days "doing good" that they have the luxury of deciding that their days will be shaped by doing good, since they don't need money - which most ordinary mortals do. They "work" because they are like most of us, work shapes our days, under whatever disguise.

What's more: who's going to say they "work to live" given its connotations in contrast to "live to work". I do neither, work is a very important part of ME (my life), to the point where, in recent months, because of certain issues that are entirely work-related, I'm down in the dumps. Totally work-related, but they are spilling over into ME (my life).

If one hates one's job, one is miserable, especially if they see their work, doing it well, and feeling fulfilled, as a key element of life. I do, yet I don't say I work to live or live to work. Being fulfilled professionally is to me, maybe as essential as breathing. Do I breathe to live or do I live to breathe?


 
Rocio Barrientos
Rocio Barrientos  Identity Verified
Bolivia
Local time: 11:01
Member
English to Spanish
+ ...
Ditto Oct 8, 2007

Enotet wrote:

I work to live but I love my work!


Very well said Enoted

I like to say that I translate because I love my family & I do it with love (more than the money, it is a passion to deliver my best service, or as Enotet wrote “I love my work!”)

My personal motto that keeps me going and sets a north for me is:
"translate for love & with love”


 
Özden Arıkan
Özden Arıkan  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 16:01
Member
English to Turkish
+ ...
On the contrary, great poll! Oct 8, 2007

Isn't it these pointlessly dichotomous questions that allow us add our own buts, but thens, ifs, ands... and so on(s) to expand on our attitudes, approaches, and beliefs, and express ourselves in full? Hence have a real discussion? Did you notice that with polls that are very well structured, with all possible situations and options thought out, we do not have such lively ones?



Besides this digression, wh
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Isn't it these pointlessly dichotomous questions that allow us add our own buts, but thens, ifs, ands... and so on(s) to expand on our attitudes, approaches, and beliefs, and express ourselves in full? Hence have a real discussion? Did you notice that with polls that are very well structured, with all possible situations and options thought out, we do not have such lively ones?



Besides this digression, which ends here, I generally agree with Lia's point of view, though. Work is an integral part of our lives, which adds meaning and purpose to it. And we do need meaning and purpose in our lives, because we know that we will die - the only species blessed with this horrible knowledge, which in turn is the source of all we add to the Life itself. So, work is not only to live, but to defy death and to leave something for the afterwards or to leave an imprint as we pass by But then, once you have that meaning and purpose in sight, you stick to it and of course you live to work, too. How can you separate the two?
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ilker ingiz
ilker ingiz
Türkiye
Local time: 18:01
German to Turkish
+ ...
I work for a life without work Oct 8, 2007

I have a simple life. Sometimes I work very hard for like 2-3 months, so I can live with that money for another 3-4 months without working again. Thats why I work.

[Bearbeitet am 2007-10-08 08:57]


 
Henrik Pipoyan
Henrik Pipoyan  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:01
Member (2004)
English to Armenian
I live and work Oct 8, 2007

That simple:)

 
Noni Gilbert Riley
Noni Gilbert Riley
Spain
Local time: 16:01
Spanish to English
+ ...
Changing priorities Oct 8, 2007

I lived to work for many years. Now I have children and I work to live. Don't suppose I'm alone on this one!

 


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Poll: My professional philosophy is:






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