How I, Who Only Knew How to Work Hard, Learned to Relax
I am the eldest daughter and a nurse.
Perhaps because of that, I had a very strong sense of responsibility and was the kind of person who could work hard as naturally as breathing.
Working hard was just normal for me. I think I worked twice as hard as anyone else.
But if someone asked me, "Did you enjoy it?", the answer would be "NO."
Back then, the option of "not working hard" did not exist for me, not even by a millimeter.
Working hard was normal. Working hard was right. So, I had never even thought about stopping.
But the body is honest.
If you keep working hard, one day, your body will force a shutdown.
"If you keep going like this, you're really going to break down."
I think that was my body trying to tell me that.
I also fell ill and had to take a break.
Even so, a hard worker blames themselves for resting.
"I've caused trouble for others." "Couldn't I have worked harder?" "It's because I'm weak."
I, too, kept blaming myself like that.
The turning point for me was meeting someone who genuinely seemed to enjoy their work.
That person always had a sparkle in their eyes while they talked.
"I want to try this kind of work." "Next, I want to challenge myself with this." They would talk like that.
And then, they said these words to me.
"You can do your job without having to work so hard."
I was shocked by those words.
Work is something you do hard.
If I don't work hard, I won't be recognized.
Because that was a way of thinking I couldn't even imagine, as someone who had lived believing that.
Right around that time, I had started learning about self-dialogue journaling.
“What is work?”
“What does it mean to work hard?”
“What does it mean to work without pushing myself so hard?”
I wrote such questions in my notebook and faced my own heart.
What I realized there was,
“I thought I had no value unless I worked hard.”
That was it.
But is that really true?
The me who works hard, and the me who cannot work hard—both are me.
Working hard does not increase my value, and not working hard does not mean my value disappears.
The moment I realized that, the world in front of me suddenly brightened.
“It’s okay not to work so hard.”
“It’s okay to work more joyfully.”
When I gave myself that permission, the tension I had been holding in my shoulders for so long simply melted away.
Even now, there are days when I push myself too hard.
But on those days, I open my notebook and ask myself.
“What are you trying so hard for today?”
“Whose expectations are you trying to meet?”
Then, my heart calms down little by little, and I can see my true feelings.
Working hard is not a bad thing.
But continuing to work hard is not the only right answer.
If you are currently,
“Tired of working so hard”
“Wanting to take a little break”
If you have those feelings,
please do not ignore that voice in your heart.
You are not valuable
because you work hard.
You are already valuable
just by existing.
Thank you for reading until the end.
In this space,
with the theme of "When your thinking changes, your life, parenting, and work also change," I share small joys found in daily life and tips for cherishing yourself.
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