“Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt

How would you define work worth doing? In my mind work worth doing is anything that contributes to the betterment of mankind. It is a broad definition, I know, but mankind is diverse and therefore requires an expansive field in which to work, create and play.

If you’ve ever been stuck in a position where you were busy working in a position that added little recognizable value to the world around you, you’ve likely felt the emptiness and futility that can accompany such enterprise. Just making a living is rarely satisfying on any meaningful level, and working to pay the bills without passion, conviction and a radiant sense of pride for the product or service your company produces can drain you emotionally, mentally and physically if you’re not careful.

Many people have told me that they could never sell what they don’t believe in. The same people would likely say that their job -when they believe in the product or service they’re representing – doesn’t feel like work most of the time because they enjoy what they do so much. Contrast that with the voices and spirits of those who have been broken by virtue of having sold their soul or suppressed their dreams to the point of no return and you have millions of compelling reasons to be dogged in your pursuit of work worth doing.

The funny thing about work worth doing is that it may not always be work that you would elect to do, had you your druthers. If you limit your search for work worth doing to work you’d like to do, you’ll likely miss tons of opportunities to grow and expand along the way. Sift through the many directions your life could take on the basis of what would most likely enhance, bless, uplift, assist and fortify, rather than on the basis of what would be most pleasing to you and I assure you that you will lead an uncommon, interesting and fulfilling life.

Life isn’t about doing what you love, it’s about loving what you’re doing, especially when the work is work worth doing. Don’t be too quick to judge the merit of the work you’re doing, particularly when it is not exactly your cup of tea, because the value may not be immediately apparent to you. I’ve spent months working on projects or in positions that I found to be arduous, tedious and worse, only to find the experience and character I gained to be invaluable at some later point in my career.

Likewise, I’ve had to work for great bosses and awful bosses. When working with the latter, I never let their limitations get me down, nor did I base the quality of my work, the altitude of my attitude or the degree to which I devoted myself to the task on what I thought about them or the fact that I was stuck with them for the time being.

If you want to find people of character, look for those whose quality of expression is not contingent upon the nature of their immediate circumstances. If you want to find people worth associating with, look for those who work hard at work worth doing. If you want to be such a person, choose wisely, stay the course and pay no attention to those who offer fulfillment in exchange for a compromise -no matter how big or small – in your integrity.