Work gives you the chance to appreciate so much more. In doing work, you feel an inherent sense of worth as you are being compensated for doing something. It is not just the actions you do on a daily basis but that others value those actions enough to pay you for it. You can develop skills you did not have before, and meet people you would never otherwise meet. If you find yourself in a job that you have prepared for through schooling or training, you can put value into the previous investment you have made in time, money, and effort. You can showcase your expertise. By working, you can make a living or enrich your life. You are able to pay for food and shelter. You can take a trip to see a place or person you have wanted to. You can gain membership to a gym or activity that you enjoy. You can treat yourself and your loved ones to a nice dinner. You find a fair amount of independence in being able to cover the costs of your own life, and if you are both hard-working and fortunate enough, you can live whatever kind of life you want to. There is a balance to be had between the work you do, particularly time spent at it, and the life you live outside of those hours. Too much of either will drive you insane and out of health. However, work gives you a healthy appreciation and contrast for your leisure time. You are more able to appreciate the experiences you have from adventures to staying in your pajamas all day when you know that those are not necessarily the typical experience. They then become leisure and voluptuous. In the contrast, you can live a better, more fulfilling life because of the work that contrasts. The work itself may be as fulfilling, or it may simply pay for the other sides of your life. It may be demanding or easy, interesting or boring. A very poignant point came to me in an internet article quote when I was coming to terms with the hyperbolic death of my ambitions: you do not have to find a job that you love every day, for that may be impossible. Find a job that you can tolerate most days, that you love some days, and that pays for the life that you want to live.