Salon Backstage Talk 057: 'Working and working' is something you can only say if you love it—A counter-intuitive approach to living beyond the 'feeling of being forced' (Part 1 of a series)

'I will work and work and work and work, and I will continue to work.' The warmth of 'love' permeates those words. Not everyone can work the same way. It's okay to have days when you can't give your all. It's fine if work is just a 'way to kill time' or a 'reason for living.' We should just live with our own individual balance.

▶ 'Working and working and working and working' is something you can only say if you love it

The phrase 'I will work and work and work and work, and I will continue to work,' which might even become a new buzzword in 2025, can be said because she loves politics (the position of Prime Minister).

In other words, it is 'being herself' for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Rather, it is natural to be concerned that 'some people will suffer health issues due to unfamiliar side jobs taken to earn living expenses because their overtime pay has decreased.'

▶ Even with overworking, there is a 'balance' unique to each person

If it's a job you don't even like, you could never say 'I will work and work and work and work.' If it's a black company, it goes without saying.

Balance is important.

It is like the 'comfort' and 'discomfort' I mentioned here.

It is like the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.

It is the Middle Way in Buddhism.

For Prime Minister Takaichi (as she is now), 'working and working and working and working, and continuing to work' is a balanced work-life balance.

(For now,) she wants to work from 3:00 AM.

▶ Working to kill time—that is more 'natural'

Life is not just about working busily; it is made up of a little bit of ease and margin.

That is why I want a society where people can live with peace of mind while working in moderation.

From there, let's try a counter-intuitive approach—to overcome the 'feeling of being forced,' a natural way of living emerges: not creating free time as a reward for working, but working because you have free time anyway.

For example, a lion with a full stomach will sleep even if prey passes right in front of it.

Work when you work, and rest when you rest.

That is the balance of the natural world (laughs) (Related article: 'Now is the chance to correct misunderstandings!').

▶ 'Because everyone else is working hard' is a form of violence

For Prime Minister Takaichi, 'working, working, working, and working' is her own work-life balance.

If not to say it's a way to kill time, she just can't help but want to work if she has any free time.

That balance should naturally change depending on how much a person loves the work they are involved in, or if not love, how well it suits them.

Of course, the energy and physical strength to work hard also differ from person to person (related article: Not everyone is Shuzo Matsuoka).

As is often said, that is not something that should be forced upon others, such as by saying, 'Because everyone else is working hard (you should work hard too).'