199: The True Price of Having a Job You Actually Enjoy

Roula (00:00)
this topic that I'm going to ask you about, ties up to our previous episode, is it okay to call in sick when you're not sick? Is it greedy to only want to do a work that you really enjoy? greedy...

I don't know if it's greedy or selfish or insensitive. What do you think?

Rosie (00:24)
think greedy is the appropriate word.

it was my question really. You're just pretending it's yours.

we had an episode talking about selfishness. Go to our website to find that because I don't think selfish is a bad thing. That's beside the point. This question came to my mind and you liked it, I suppose. I'm not sure why, but it came to my mind because I just seem to feel everything so much more intensely than other people and really get so low when I am making a living through work that I just

don't enjoy. It really affects my mental health in such a big way and why it's front of mind is because I'm going through it right now and I have these thoughts of am I just being greedy? it unrealistic to want to make a living doing something that I enjoy? Do other people feel this way? Are other people that depressed or having such a hard time when they're doing work they don't like? Or do other people just accept it?

Like am I normal?

Roula (01:42)
I think you're totally normal.

with few irregularities. ⁓ Rozy, we go through phases in our lives and not everyone is born to have a structured work from nine to five. Not everyone is born with the capacity to become a doctor. You know what I mean?

Rosie (01:57)
Yeah.

Mm.

Roula (02:15)
Not everyone is born to be a teacher, as you discovered, or a podcaster. it's a journey. And you say, it greedy to only want to do the work that you enjoy? And there are layers of layers to it. And I'm going to be quick. I don't want this episode to go until the 15, 20 minutes, because we want to keep it interesting for our listeners. know, quickies, stay in the quickies.

Rosie (02:18)
Yeah. Or a podcaster.

All right, you gotta be succinct, all right. You rambled too much last

episode, get to the point, yep.

Roula (02:46)
Okay, I'm gonna take a deep breath, ignore what Rosie said, come back with love.

Rosie (02:47)
resting bitch tongue.

I'm giving love too, just so you know.

Roula (02:56)
Yeah, it

depends Rosie on what we want in life. I know you and I know that you're a minimalistic person or minimalist not minimalistic. You're a minimalist. You're okay to live in your van. You don't want too much material stuff. You're okay and when waiting and finding the work that you really love because even though

Rosie (03:01)
Mmm.

Roula (03:22)
We need the money to pay our rent, our phone bills, water, et cetera. It also depends on what we want in life. There are moments where I don't want to feel like I'm preaching, but if we want the car, the house, the clothes, the shoes, the sports activities, et cetera, the travel, we have to sacrifice something and it might be doing a job we don't like.

Rosie (03:30)
Mmm.

Mmm.

to sacrifice something. Yeah, I think that's a good point. Every decision we make has a price and by leading my life where I just am insistent on finding a way to make a living that brings me joy makes it more difficult for me to earn money because I'm still trying to figure out what it is that brings me joy. Our podcast brings me joy.

And we're all behind the scenes of figuring out perhaps how we could earn a little bit of money through this. But it's fucking confusing. Can I just say that? Like it is confusing and it does stress me out. And I've gone to teaching, which feels like such a breach of my values and my principles. really does. It's like this existential crisis. And I don't actually think that's an exaggeration. I wonder what the

the real definition of it is, but it's really just, I kind of haven't been doing so well and it's only been three weeks of teaching. ⁓ So I'm very sensitive and you know what? Sometimes I feel like, can't I just be like everyone else? And then I go, no, I am demanding more from life. So yes, mm.

Roula (05:06)
Rosie,

let me stop you a little bit from rambling before it becomes a bit boring. Doing something you enjoy is harder than working for someone else.

Rosie (05:10)
⁓

Roula (05:21)
It's not easier. It's harder. It's you, your goal, your ambition, your hard work. But working at a job and having a salary at the end of the day, it has some kind of security. It's structured. Someone else is worried about the other stuff. Heck, even at this, wherever you work, they're helping you do your tax returns and your pension and et cetera. So doing something you enjoy demands more hard work.

Rosie (05:35)
It does.

Mmm.

Roula (05:51)
and putting your energy in it, then not doing that. And we forget to talk about this.

Rosie (05:55)
And that's the price. That's the price

of it. Yeah, it's there is always a price and I think each of us have to consider that. What is the price of choosing a particular path? For me, yes. Yeah, envy on both sides.

Roula (06:05)
And there is envy too. When you say, I greedy?

she's living the dream, or he's living a dream and doing the thing they love and that's amazing. But it's not easy. It's never been easy to do the things we love. We're doing this podcast together. We love it, but it's lot of work. We put so much in it and hoping one day we can ⁓

Rosie (06:28)
Yeah.

Roula (06:33)
monetize it, we can grow, bring something more to our audience. So we're doing something we love, but it's working very hard for it.

Rosie (06:42)
It is working hard, but there's something about it that makes it feel better. You're still working so hard and it's not the conventional path, so it is a bit trickier to persevere and go down that path. But I just feel so much more at peace and so much more aligned that it makes it okay. Yes, it's hard, I'm gonna have bad days, I'm not always gonna love it.

But overall, the hard work feels worth it. Whereas doing work like relief teaching like I am now does not feel worth it. I'm kind of envious of people who can make it feel worth it.

Roula (07:16)
Do you think?

Yeah, but that's why I appreciate and I'm grateful that we're all different people. Because if we all have the same mindset, we won't have nurses, we won't have people cleaning our streets, we won't have people working in supermarkets. You know, then everyone wants to do something they love. What's going to become? Become all of us hippies.

Rosie (07:27)
Yeah.

would be screwed

Mm.

because these people might love being a cleaner or working in the supermarket or being a doctor. So doing something you love I think we are all entitled to and we all deserve. I am so sick of this notion of well it's work and you just got to do it you're not going to like it that's what you got to do until you hit retirement. Fuck that.

Roula (07:46)
Yeah! That's why it's so nice that there are everything.

Thanks for saying this because my mind went directly into entrepreneurship.

Rosie (08:11)
Mmm.

Roula (08:13)
While of course there are so many people doing their jobs and they're loving it very much. Yeah, my mind went into entrepreneurship.

Rosie (08:18)
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think for me,

I think I lean towards the entrepreneurship side. I wouldn't say I'm an entrepreneur. What about you? Do you see yourself as an entrepreneur?

Roula (08:37)
Hmm, no, I see myself as a freelancer, but not really as an entrepreneur, no.

Rosie (08:41)
Eee!

Yeah, the word so intimidating to me. That's part of my issue with it. Entrepreneur, so intimidating.

Roula (08:49)
What? Entrepreneur.

I am entrepreneur. Entrepreneur for me means, and I think of it from because I studied in French and it's so embedded in my mind. Entrepreneur means take initiative.

Rosie (08:59)
Mm-mm.

That's us then.

Roula (09:06)
I am an entrepreneur, but this doesn't mean entrepreneur in the sense of have my own company or have my own business. I company business, whatever.

Rosie (09:19)
But if

you're a freelancer, do have your own business. Anyway, this is like a mindset imposter syndrome thing. But I don't actually remember where this conversation started, but it's been on my mind. yes, is it greedy? The other day I felt I was being greedy and unrealistic, and now I'm like, no, fuck that. I've had two days off, I'm like, no, I deserve to have joy in my life. We spend so much time working.

Roula (09:23)
Yeah.

Is it greedy to only want to do the thing you enjoy?

Rosie (09:49)
I don't want to be miserable for the majority of my life. No, thank you. So I'm going to find a way to make it work.

Roula (09:54)
Yes.

Find your purpose, whatever it is. For us, we're finding it, we're trying to find it. For the listeners, mean, I'm not Jay Shetty to advise on your purpose, but I know a thing or two. Yeah, it's good to find our purpose. And if it's not in the work we do, it could be in a hobby. share it in the show notes?

Rosie (10:10)
Fuck. Purpose. I have an episode on my podcast about purpose. a hobby.

I will share it in the show notes because I'm rather opinionated about the topic of purpose. I have issue with it, but go to that episode if you want to hear it. I'll link it in the description. But this was a good chat, Roula I feel like, I'll find it and send it to you, Roula. And you'll say, Rosie, you are full of

Roula (10:32)
I will re-listen to your episode, yes.

Rosie (10:39)
of shit. But we don't have to agree do we? That's what I love about you Roula You are not afraid to question me and have a different opinion. You don't back down when I ask questions. I know I can be abrupt and we I feel like we match each other. We just we complement each other and I love it. So thank you.

Roula (11:04)
Thank you, Rosie.

Thank you so much. I'll compliment you on the next episode. Bye!

Rosie (11:09)
Thank you, you're better, bye.