The Three-City Problem of Meaningless Work
Work and Meaning Through the Eyes of Silicon Valley, Athens, and Jerusalem
Below is a guest essay by Kahlil Corazo, inspired by this essay that I wrote for WIRED Magazine, titled “The Three City Problem of Modern Life”.
John (not his real name) is a 38-year-old unmarried man who recently quit his high-paying job after 15 years, due to burnout. He is part of the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement. John reached his “FIRE number” some time ago. This means he had earned and invested enough money that he could live off his passive income. However, two weeks after quitting his job, John posted in the Facebook forum of our local FIRE community, saying that he was second-guessing whether he made the right decision. “I can’t figure out where and what to start, to fill my time — and now am contemplating whether I should go back [to holding a job], or start a business,” he wrote.
In response to John, I recommended two books: The Pathless Path by Paul Millerd and The Good Enough Job by Simone Stolzoff (I have become that type of guy). My endorsement was based not only on my first-hand appreciation of these books but from the thousands of grateful reviews from their readers. The popularity of these books shows that, like John, many are grappling with the purpose of…
