6 ms·

I knew a guy who worked 6 months a year doing contract work and then spent the other 6 months on hobbies and personal projects. I remember asking him if he get

I knew a guy who worked 6 months a year doing contract work and then spent the other 6 months on hobbies and personal projects. I remember asking him if he gets bored during those 6 months not working and he said to me "I don't base my life enjoyment off of making someone else money". That advice has really stuck to me and its really cool to see the electronics projects he builds in those 6 months.

52-6F-62 8y ago
That sounds pretty pleasurable. IIRC that second six months is the true classical definition of a life of leisure.
- hoaw 8y ago
  I have done similar things and it generally isn't. Or it is getting very hard to make it so. Western society has become much more hierarchical in recent years. It is harder and harder to find any "cracks in system" on a fundamental level. Even if you would consider leisure to be neutral, and not in need of meaning, most people aren't even starting from a neutral point. So if you do something else you end up being underprivileged rather than in leisure.
  - 52-6F-62 8y ago
    I think you misunderstand what I mean by classical definition of leisure. This kind of runs through it: https://www.academia.edu/17614838/Aristotle_Leisure_and_the_Good_State https://www.academia.edu/17614838/Aristotle_Leisure_and_the_... or https://blogs.harvard.edu/nobleleisure/aristotle-on-work-vs-leisure/ https://blogs.harvard.edu/nobleleisure/aristotle-on-work-vs-... Bonus material (wider in scope, though): http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/nicomachaen.html http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/nicomachaen.html
    - hoaw 8y ago
      Not unlikely, which is why I wrote somewhat vaguely. Ironically I don't have time to read your resources at the moment. My point is that there just isn't that much room for other things these days. So many things, from a $5 coffee to housing, is based on the idea that everyone is working all the time. You can of course quit working, pay the same rent and lock yourself in a room trying to forget the outside world until you can't. But I am not sure that is a road to happiness either. I mean, many people can barely achieve "weekend glory" these days.
      - 52-6F-62 8y ago
        I think I get what you're saying, now. Sounds like more of a critique of North American/protestant work ethic coupled with our acclimating to convenience. I think that's probably a whole other subject to be tackled. Aristotle's core point above would be along the lines of: Relaxation (in order to) -> Work (in order to) -> Leisure (the goal, for its own sake) Leisure and relaxation being entirely different activities, or lack thereof. Maybe think of leisure in this case being the activity of passion/deep interest or communal good or else that might not come in returns that pay for any other aspect of your life directly. Work being the activity (that you may well enjoy enough, or have interest in) that pays for everything and allows you time and/or resources for leisure. Relaxation is what helps you essentially stay sane and healthy in order to follow through with the rest. So it seems like you aren't taking on peoples' ability for leisure, but NA society's values that prevent it [for most people].
        hoaw 8y ago
        Right. I am saying that if you take time off you end up being at odds with much of society. You realize that many things, even leisure activities, now only exists in relation to work. And after not working for a while few of these things are exciting anymore. So I am not saying it isn't a good idea. Just that it is hard from a practical perspective. Which is why younger people who take sabbaticals often end up in e.g. Asia.
        52-6F-62 8y ago
        I don't think it needs to be that grand of a scale to fulfill the reasoning. OP's example was a fellow taking time off and exercising his other interests in electronics by learning and experimenting. Another example might be a hobby. A hobby is a great example of a leisure activity as its [usually] done completely for its own sake. For instance, a sheet metal worker who spends much of their time off work playing in an amateur cricket league [however unlikely and obscure an image that might be]. I don't think I understand, though, how you mean it puts anyone at odds with society. Could you elaborate?
croh 8y ago
any link to projects ?
- ndnxhs 8y ago
  It was just stuff like building power supplies and little Tesla coils. Every few weeks I'd get sent cool videos like a lightbulb being wirelessly lit up by the coil.
ataturk 8y ago
Seems like everyone "knows a guy" that does that but when I attempted the same thing it failed miserably. I took a paltry three months off and then every recruiter and hiring manager was immediately suspicious of me when I started going on interviews again. They all suspected I was in jail or something. Meanwhile, I literally just took three months to catch up on my life. In my current role, I could probably work 3 days a week and meet my same obligations. Our scrum master could be fired and nobody would even notice.
alistairSH 8y ago
My father had a co-worker who did this. 8 months in the DC office doing construction cost management consulting, 4 months in Montana hunting (he was into falconry, archery, and conservation of all the natural resources needed to sustain his hobbies). He also used to raise his birds in the office (when they were newly hatched) - that was pretty darn cool as a 1st grader.
wil421 8y ago
Does this guy have a family and kids? I worked with a guy who does a similar thing. In fact his contract just ended. The only reason he said he’s able to is because he’s older, single, and doesn’t have kids.
- ndnxhs 8y ago
  He has a boyfriend and no kids so I guess a high paying programming contract is easily enough to cover his needs.
gumby 8y ago
I have an old college classmate who does this with a twist: he has a number, and when he hits that number he stops for the rest of the year. Last time I spoke with him that was about six months.

52-6F-62 8y ago

That sounds pretty pleasurable. IIRC that second six months is the true classical definition of a life of leisure.

hoaw 8y ago
I have done similar things and it generally isn't. Or it is getting very hard to make it so. Western society has become much more hierarchical in recent years. It is harder and harder to find any "cracks in system" on a fundamental level. Even if you would consider leisure to be neutral, and not in need of meaning, most people aren't even starting from a neutral point. So if you do something else you end up being underprivileged rather than in leisure.
- 52-6F-62 8y ago
  I think you misunderstand what I mean by classical definition of leisure. This kind of runs through it: https://www.academia.edu/17614838/Aristotle_Leisure_and_the_Good_State https://www.academia.edu/17614838/Aristotle_Leisure_and_the_... or https://blogs.harvard.edu/nobleleisure/aristotle-on-work-vs-leisure/ https://blogs.harvard.edu/nobleleisure/aristotle-on-work-vs-... Bonus material (wider in scope, though): http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/nicomachaen.html http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/nicomachaen.html
  - hoaw 8y ago
    Not unlikely, which is why I wrote somewhat vaguely. Ironically I don't have time to read your resources at the moment. My point is that there just isn't that much room for other things these days. So many things, from a $5 coffee to housing, is based on the idea that everyone is working all the time. You can of course quit working, pay the same rent and lock yourself in a room trying to forget the outside world until you can't. But I am not sure that is a road to happiness either. I mean, many people can barely achieve "weekend glory" these days.
    - 52-6F-62 8y ago
      I think I get what you're saying, now. Sounds like more of a critique of North American/protestant work ethic coupled with our acclimating to convenience. I think that's probably a whole other subject to be tackled. Aristotle's core point above would be along the lines of: Relaxation (in order to) -> Work (in order to) -> Leisure (the goal, for its own sake) Leisure and relaxation being entirely different activities, or lack thereof. Maybe think of leisure in this case being the activity of passion/deep interest or communal good or else that might not come in returns that pay for any other aspect of your life directly. Work being the activity (that you may well enjoy enough, or have interest in) that pays for everything and allows you time and/or resources for leisure. Relaxation is what helps you essentially stay sane and healthy in order to follow through with the rest. So it seems like you aren't taking on peoples' ability for leisure, but NA society's values that prevent it [for most people].
      - hoaw 8y ago
        Right. I am saying that if you take time off you end up being at odds with much of society. You realize that many things, even leisure activities, now only exists in relation to work. And after not working for a while few of these things are exciting anymore. So I am not saying it isn't a good idea. Just that it is hard from a practical perspective. Which is why younger people who take sabbaticals often end up in e.g. Asia.
        52-6F-62 8y ago
        I don't think it needs to be that grand of a scale to fulfill the reasoning. OP's example was a fellow taking time off and exercising his other interests in electronics by learning and experimenting. Another example might be a hobby. A hobby is a great example of a leisure activity as its [usually] done completely for its own sake. For instance, a sheet metal worker who spends much of their time off work playing in an amateur cricket league [however unlikely and obscure an image that might be]. I don't think I understand, though, how you mean it puts anyone at odds with society. Could you elaborate?

croh 8y ago

any link to projects ?

ndnxhs 8y ago
It was just stuff like building power supplies and little Tesla coils. Every few weeks I'd get sent cool videos like a lightbulb being wirelessly lit up by the coil.

ataturk 8y ago

Seems like everyone "knows a guy" that does that but when I attempted the same thing it failed miserably. I took a paltry three months off and then every recruiter and hiring manager was immediately suspicious of me when I started going on interviews again. They all suspected I was in jail or something. Meanwhile, I literally just took three months to catch up on my life. In my current role, I could probably work 3 days a week and meet my same obligations. Our scrum master could be fired and nobody would even notice.

alistairSH 8y ago

My father had a co-worker who did this. 8 months in the DC office doing construction cost management consulting, 4 months in Montana hunting (he was into falconry, archery, and conservation of all the natural resources needed to sustain his hobbies). He also used to raise his birds in the office (when they were newly hatched) - that was pretty darn cool as a 1st grader.

wil421 8y ago

Does this guy have a family and kids? I worked with a guy who does a similar thing. In fact his contract just ended. The only reason he said he’s able to is because he’s older, single, and doesn’t have kids.

ndnxhs 8y ago
He has a boyfriend and no kids so I guess a high paying programming contract is easily enough to cover his needs.

gumby 8y ago

I have an old college classmate who does this with a twist: he has a number, and when he hits that number he stops for the rest of the year. Last time I spoke with him that was about six months.