A teacher impressed on me at a formative age that I wasn't likeable enough that people would ever respect me unless I did good work. I'm definitely reliant on m

A teacher impressed on me at a formative age that I wasn't likeable enough that people would ever respect me unless I did good work. I'm definitely reliant on my work (though no particular job) as a core part of my identity, but it's a mutually beneficial relationship overall. Tough love but insightful/fair advice in retrospect.