Has Work Become an Idol?

We have a tendency these days to let work take over our lives.

It used to be that work was just something we did—a small part of who we are—but now we wrap our entire identities up in what we do for a living.

We make work such a central part of our lives that in many cases it’s to the point of idolatry. In today’s episode, we explore this relationship with work and how we can turn things around.

Lightly edited transcript appears after the show notes.

Topics we explore

• the role work plays in our lives
• signs that work has become an idol
• how to turn things around

Resources mentioned

Lifestyle Freedom Starter Guide: https://www.rhothomas.com/start

Wealthyesque, Episode 4: https://www.rhothomas.com/your-job-does-not-define-you/

Wealthyesque, Episode 14: https://www.rhothomas.com/the-danger-of-later/

Wealthyesque, Episode 6: https://www.rhothomas.com/how-to-keep-work-from-taking-over-your-life-as-a-lawyer/

Connect with me

The Wealthyesque Community: https://www.rhothomas.com/community

Social media: @iamrhothomas on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter

Email: hello@rhothomas.com

Lightly Edited Transcript

Hey friend. Welcome back to another episode of Wealthyesque.

I am so grateful for you to spend some time with me, and I’m really excited for you to be here today.

If you haven’t already, please take a second and leave a review for the podcast if you’re liking the content that I’m putting out. It really helps other people be able to find the podcast so that we can spread this message of taking control of our time and building wealth and living the lives of freedom and choice that we deserve.

Today, I want to talk about this tendency we have to let work just take over our lives. It used to be that work was something that we did, but these days our entire identities are tied up in our work.

The first thing we ask people is what they do. And to be fair, I’m guilty of this, too.

But it’s gotten to the point that we just don’t know how to turn it off. And so I want to talk about it.

I want to talk about:

• the role that work plays in our lives
• signs that work has become an idol in your life and
• how we can turn things around

So let’s jump right in.

The role work plays in our lives

I mentioned that word “idol.” What is an idol?

Merriam-Webster defines an idol as “an object of extreme devotion” or “a representation or symbol of an object of worship.”

Then, I looked up the definition of worship, and worship is “to honor or show reverence for as a divine being or supernatural power” or “to regard with great or extravagant respect honor or devotion.”

And when I think about work those definitions absolutely fit, right?

We are extremely devoted to our jobs. We show reverence to our jobs. We show great respect and honor to our jobs.

But I want to know where we got this idea that our lives should revolve around work.

Our society puts hard work and productivity on a pedestal. Hard workers receive promotions and bonuses and respect from others.

So many people don’t use their vacation time at all, and many more use some but not all of it.

As I said before, we just don’t know how to relax. And this is especially true of lawyers, where our idea of a vacation is that we only check email in the morning, right?

Work has become the center of our lives. It’s the source of our purpose, and it’s become an idol for many people.

We’ve touched on it a bit before, and you can check out episode 4 and episode 14 for some of those previous discussions, but I just want to go a bit deeper today because the big issue with all this is that work can’t be the end-all-be-all that we’ve positioned it to be.

People are working harder and harder for the promises of more prestige and more money and more recognition, more success, but with all those things, come the negative side effects, too, right?

Broken relationships, unrealistic demands that others put on us or that we put on ourselves. Burnout. And on the extreme side, substance abuse and even suicide.

We work to the point that we’re undermining every other aspect of our lives. Our faith. Our health. Our relationships. Pouring everything into this thing that can’t and won’t love us back.

It’s really disconcerting the position that we put work in. This prominent place that work plays in our lives.

For some reason in law especially, if you’re not slaving away then you’re not a good attorney. If you’re not sacrificing everything for the law, you’re not a good attorney.

I don’t know where that viewpoint has come from, but it’s really unhealthy, and I think we need to turn things around.

Signs work has become an idol

So now let’s talk a little bit about how to know if work has become an idol in your life.

The very first sign for me is that work consumes your life. If you’re constantly thinking about work. You’re constantly checking your email. You work through the night or work late.

Work keeps you up at night. You’re thinking about the things that you need to do the next day or thinking about strategy in this case or whatever the case may be.

You’re too busy with work to go to church or whatever your place of worship is or to go to the doctor. You can’t not talk about work. You can’t be with your family and just be.

That’s a problem.

Another one is if work is a source of worth and esteem for you.

You’re looking for praise and validation from others. You want to do a good job, not just for the sake of doing your work well, but because you want that recognition or that pat on the back for a job well done.

You enjoy when others are impressed that you’re a lawyer. You look for ways to make your boss or your clients or whatever happy because you want that external validation.

That is a sign that work is an idol for you.

Another sign is when your self-perception is heavily influenced by how you’re doing at work.

You’re on cloud nine when you win that motion or you get good feedback on your work, but then you feel like a failure when you make a mistake.

You feel like you’re not a good lawyer because the partner or the client is unhappy with something you did. The way that you view yourself, your self-worth is wrapped up in your performance at work.

If you aren’t as productive as you wanted to be that day or you didn’t bill as many hours as you wanted to bill, then you feel that you have failed.

When your work has that much influence on the way you see yourself, that can be problematic. Head back to episode 4 where we talked about not letting your work define you.

Another sign is when you value work more than your family and friends. And I know this one might be a bit triggering but hear me out.

When you’re missing out on activities because you have to work. You can’t put your phone down, stop checking your email during family time.

Whatever the case may be that your attention is more focused on your work than on your family and friends, then you are valuing your work over your family and friends. That is a sign that work has become an idol for you.

How can we turn things around?

We’ve looked at all of these things. How can we turn it all around?

You know I am a Christian and so I say “God,” but use whatever you need to use to get this message.

We have to acknowledge God as the head of our lives and the source of all. It’s not the firm. It’s not the partners. It’s not the clients.

The Bible says we are to have no other gods before God. But for many of us work has become god.

We desire work, money, success, all of the things that work leads to more than we desire God, and it’s a dangerous place to be.

So make time to go to church or your place of worship. Read your Bible. Spend time in your faith. Don’t get so busy with your job that you forget to nourish your soul.

The second thing is just taking an honest stock of your life and looking at what’s going on there.

Are you seeking validation from partners and clients or colleagues? Are you neglecting your family and other relationships?

Why is that? What is it about work that makes you feel that way? What is it about your relationship with yourself that makes you need that external validation?

We’ve talked about mindfulness practices before, but mindfulness practices like journaling and meditation can help you get to the root of this.

The third thing is recognizing our inherent self-worth, and some of that might come out in your mindfulness practices, but we are valuable simply because God created us. Your value is not measured by how productive you are. You don’t have to work yourself into the ground and jump through hoops and whatever else to prove your worth.

You are worthy just because, and recognizing that can help you to put work in its proper place. It can help you to see that you don’t need to idolize work to be worthy. You are worthy, whether you work 50-60 hours or not.

The fourth thing is setting boundaries. We talked about this before if you had back to episode 6, but setting boundaries is essential in putting work in its proper place because if you don’t have proper boundaries, then your work will bleed into all areas of your life.

If you don’t set boundaries with people, then they’re going to do whatever they want to do, right? So set those boundaries.

Don’t answer emails at all hours of the night. Answer emails at certain times that you are available to answer emails.

Don’t answer phone calls at all hours of the night. Answer the phone when you’re available for phone calls.

Stop working all night every night. Stop working every weekend. Take time for yourself. Set those boundaries.

Block out time for yourself on your calendar, and make sure that you are protecting your time and not allowing work to take over your entire life.

The final thing is taking time off and really taking time off.

In the Christian faith, we’re supposed to observe the Sabbath. We’re supposed to work six days and rest on the seventh.

But many of us are working seven days a week. We don’t take time to rest.

Something interesting to consider: God made man on the sixth day, and on the seventh day he rested, so the first full day man was on Earth was a day of rest.

And beyond the biblical implications, our bodies literally need rest. We can’t operate on fumes.

Our minds are more focused; we are more productive; we are better able to handle stressful situations when we get rest.

So take a day off sometime. Take a vacation where you don’t do work only in the mornings. Take a real vacation, and don’t do work.

Stop working through the night. Stop working every weekend. Get some rest, and your body will thank you for it.

Let’s recap.

1. Americans don’t know how to rest. We have become obsessed with work, and most of us are not using all of our vacation time, if any at all.

2. We work harder and harder for prestige, success, recognition, but don’t think about the negative side effects: broken relationships, burnout, and other negative consequences.

3. There are a number of signs that work has become an idol in your life. First, if work consumes your life and you’re constantly thinking about it. If work is a source of worth and esteem for you. If your self-perception is influenced by how well you’re doing at work. And if you value work more than your family and friends.

4. How can we turn things around? (1) Acknowledging God or your higher power as the head of your life. (2) Taking an honest stock of your life and the things that are going on with you. (3) Recognizing your inherent self-worth. (4) Setting boundaries. (5) Taking real time off.

Okay, that’s it for this week’s episode.

Come on over to our private Facebook community, The Wealthyesque Community, and let’s talk about your thoughts on whether you think work has become an idol in your life and how you can turn things around.

If you got value from today’s episode, please think of one or two friends who might benefit from this message, and go ahead and share it with them. And if you share on social media don’t forget to tag me I’m @iamrhothomas on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

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As we close out, friend, I pray that you will open your heart to this message and really take a look at your life and your work habits and consider where you need to make changes and evaluate your priorities.

I pray that you will strive to keep work in its proper place and not allow it to take center stage in your life.

And as always, I pray that you will continue to take steps to regain control of your time, build wealth, and live the life of freedom and choice you deserve.

Talk to you later.