Quote of the day by Maxim Gorky: 'When work is a pleasure, life is a joy. When work is a duty, life is slavery.' ; lessons on productivity from Russian literary icon

When you are emotionally invested in your job then going to work is no longer a chore or a burden but a joy. Most people who are in jobs they genuinely enjoy, don’t have problems in thoroughly engaging themselves with their job, being dedicated and looking forward to go to work. When work is not a chore but an activity you truly like, your productivity also increases naturally. Many years ago, Russian author Maxim Gorky explained why it was so important to be in love with your job. When you are love your job, so much that you would give your 100% instinctually, even without the incentives of pay hikes or promotion, that is your dream job.

Gorky On What Makes A Dream Job

In his play The Lower Depths, Gorky wrote: “When work is a pleasure, life is a joy. When work is a duty, life is slavery!”

Deeper Meaning Of The Quote

Gorky explains why people who are in a job they love - they do not view it just as an obligation or a means to earn money, but genuinely derive joy from it. They may be intellectually challenged and enriched from the work they do or feel they are making a difference. This has a big impact on their morale.

Relevance Of Gorky’s Wisdom

At an age where employee engagement has become a serious issue in many companies and many workers leave because they no longer are invested in their jobs, Gorky’s words are more relevant than ever. While incentives such as salary hikes and promotion do play a role in gaining employee loyalty, work that people fly engaging has a nice round robin effect on boosting their productivity.

About Maxim Gorky

Gorky was a famous Soviet author, journalist. A proponent of Socialism, he was nominated five times for Nobel Prize in Literature. His reputation as a author emerged from the powerful short stories he wrote during the 1890s many of which blended romantic idealism with philosophical influences drawn from Nietzschean thought. Stories such as Chelkash, Old Izergil, and Twenty-six Men and a Girl portrayed working class and societal outcasts with great sensitivity and nuance.