Natural and necessary desires
Epicurus was an ancient Greek philosopher who developed the philosophy Epicureanism, a version of hedonism.
We may associate being an "Epicurean" with eating Instagram worthy meals, but the original intent of Epicurus' philosophy was to achieve general happiness through the removal of pain and fear.
In the book, The Art of Happiness, the author quotes one of Epicurus' teachings on desire:
"Some desires are (1) natural and necessary, others (2) natural but not necessary, still others (3) neither natural nor necessary but generated by senseless whims."
Epicurus. The Art of Happiness
This is a good framework for assessing your career goals. It is natural and necessary to pursue a living? Yes.
It is natural and necessary to pursue infinite wealth? Natural, yes. Necessary? Probably not.
Is it natural and necessary to seek promotions at a mega-corp for the prestige? Unlikely. Corporate culture probably indoctrinated you with this fake desire.
I try to keep this framework in mind when pursuing goals.
Going 1099 was a way to achieve more personal financial and time freedom, which I found natural and necessary.
Once I discarded the notion of conventional prestige as an unnecessary desire, I became a lot happier.
What desires do you pursue? Are they natural and necessary? Or are they just causing you unhappiness?
Want the full playbook? Check out Going 1099.