re: Question for the middle age folks on this board..

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Where do find the motivation to keep giving it your all at your job?

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Never have and never will.

I've never had the desire to climb the corporate ladder and although I've been successful it's been more of a byproduct of yearning for efficiency and innovation not just outworking the people next to me.

Home life, family, social life, physical health, etc have all been more important to me than giving any job my all.

Did I wake up during the night. Create another account and post this, because it describes me. I've got about 5 years to go in the working world and don't know how I'm going to do it here.

It's more the job than bored with working, but I won't get a job in another industry making what I make now at this point in my career and I'm just putting as much as I can away to get out of this place as soon as I can.

I’m in Accounting/Management. I am in a job that once I had everything set up the way I wanted and it flowed smoothly (processes, staff, etc.), my work life became easy. I’m here 33-37 hours a week. No weekends. Able to drop off and pick up son from school on my carpool days. I can run errands whenever want to, leave early whenever I want to. As long as I’m here a few hours then leave, not even charged vacation time for the day.

I’m happy with my salary. Between my wife and I salary, we have a good family life. We’re stretched at times like most, but easily upper middle class lifestyle.

Could I leave here tomorrow and make a lot more, yes. But can’t put a price on the free time out of here and little stress.

Find a job that isn’t stressful but still pays the bills. You don’t have to make as much as you can to be happy. It’s what you do outside of work that’s important. Find a job that gives you as much of “that” time as possible.

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Having to amuse yourself 8 hours a day is tougher than you think. If most of your friends are still working, I'd say keep working. I think I'll have trouble with retirement.

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You can play golf, workout every day, go fishing, hunting, work on the honey-do list around the house, etc. You don't have to just sit on the couch in your drawers all day. Of course, there's nothing wrong with that either.

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My biggest concern with retirement is becoming an alcoholic. I drink pretty much all day on my off days. Never to the point of sloppy inebriation, but enough to concern me if I have more free time.

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Paw Paw gotta be able to drink too, now!

A nice paycheck is enough to motivate me. The more I make the happier I am. It’s a symbiotic relationship. There is a direct correlation between the more I work the larger my paycheck is. I have a salaried position but the carrot held on a stick is a bonus in July and December. When the company has had a more profitable year the bigger those bonuses run.

Middle age is in my rearview mirror, but I love what I do, so a bit different than most responses to the question. The day I don’t enjoy it, will be my last day on the job.

It's a hard world in a lot of ways. The American business environment and career market is not conducive to happiness.

You have to go out of your way to do things like you said. Everything in our culture is geared and focused for more, more, MORE. Nothing is ever good enough.

Not to mention you can do all of that and still get screwed over because of nepotism or favors or just because someone doesn't like you.