We have heard it all before. “To whom much is given, much is required”. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”. “A strong work ethic builds good character”. I have never heard that last one verbatim. Nonetheless, you get the point. I am naturally a hard working person. In fact, I can be dedicated to a fault, even longer than I should be. Lately, I started paying attention to people calling out certain character building scenarios in life. There is nothing wrong with putting a little elbow grease effort into certain situations. However, everything in life must have balance. More importantly, who does the hard work really benefit?

Pay attention the next time you find yourself in this situation. People often brush off hard work as character building when it suits their benefit. Again, someone has to benefit from hard work. This is inevitable. We do have to draw a line for our own sanity though. There is another old saying, “I could complain, but no one would listen anyway”. I try to think of this before I verbally vomit about what’s going on in my life. Remember that someone is always working harder. Someone is always more disadvantaged. There is always someone who is getting an even shorter end of the stick.

Work hard if you must. Work hard because you should. However, be sure that you’re doing it for the right reasons. This is why I have so much respect for people who run their own businesses. Sometimes, it’s not about instant success, but rather the faith try something new. Anyone can work hard to meet another person’s bottom line. What about your bottom line though? What are you doing today that will enhance your life greatly 5 years from now. Think about it the next time you roll up your sleeves to get dirty, in the name of good character.