“When you are enthusiastic about what you do, you feel this positive energy. It’s very simple.” – Paulo Coelho
There are a lot of things out there I do not like doing. I am not fan of certain chores at home and different things I have to do with my job. That’s I have specific hobbies that I enjoy and look forward to doing. One of them is photography. I enjoy going out with my camera and capturing what I see around me. I enjoy taking the time and working with the photos on Photoshop (or as I like to call it, poor mans Lightroom). I enjoy making posts for social media. From sharing things I enjoying doing to posting about photography online, it brings me joy. Even though I work in a difficult profession, I like my job. I enjoy teaching. The last few years have made it more difficult, but I have still been able to be successful. I’ve been able to be successful because I have found joy in what I do.
I took these photos last fall when the family and I went apple picking in Hendersonville, North Carolina. We spent the morning picking apples, and then hung in town for the afternoon eating lunch and drinking coffee.
Through Griffin's Lens 
“Only Do It If You Like It” is bad advice.
I’m not trying to start a fight or anything; but doing things we don’t like doing is just the way it is in life. We don’t have the luxury of doing only the things we like doing, and indulging in that behavior turns us into a fundamentally weak society that can’t handle any adversity whatsoever…
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I see your point. It depends on what you are talking about. Maybe I should have been more clear. If the discussion is focused hobbies or even certain career choices, if you can’t find joy in it then why do it? Some things in life are required no matter if we like them are not. However, there are things that we choose to do, and if we don’t like then why do it? Thanks for feedback. I see what you are saying, and I appreciate you taking the time to share.
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Ah, yes; in context of things you can control, it’s silly to do things you don’t enjoy. But there’s still some value in “doing one thing that sucks today” as David Goggins says.
A silly example: I spent the first few hours of Dark Souls thinking “This isn’t fun; why am I doing this to myself?” — then it clicked, and it was fun (though often no less frustrating).
A less-silly example: When I was younger, I didn’t enjoy running. I only started running to run with my daughter who was doing cross country, but didn’t like it. But something happened at one point, and I started running on my own for myself, and… I enjoy it.
As I said, I wasn’t trying to pick a fight or anything. I think doing things that suck helps us build callouses toward adversity.
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That goes back to the reason why you are doing it. If I had to choose between weight lifting and sitting at home eating chips, eating chips is way more fun. But I have a goal of taking care of myself and being in better shape. You can find joy in meeting goals as well. I might come back to topic later and better refine it.
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Again, if we’re saying the same thing, forgive me (Software developer here, we tend to be literal)…
I was suggesting another good reason to do stuff that sucks is you may find you like it — and it ceases to suck.
I won’t belabor the point further — it wasn’t my intent to drag this out. Only to suggest we should teach ourselves and our kids to push through the suck.
Cheers, Mate.
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Joe! Congratulations on being a teacher. I’m glad to see you get out to do things you enjoy, outside the classroom. What do you teach?
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I currently teach 5th grade math and science
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