How to Avoid Work

There really isn't anything new under the sun. Long before "Career Avoidance 101" became a class - 64 years before, in fact - there was the book How to Avoid Work by William J. Reilly. The site Brain Pickings does a great job discussing Reilly's 1949 book; hop on over there and give the article a read.

Here's my favorite quotation from How to Avoid Work:

"There is only one way in this world to achieve true happiness, and that is to express yourself with all your skill and enthusiasm in a career that appeals to you more than any other. In such a career, you feel a sense of purpose, a sense of achievement. You feel you are making a contribution. It is not work."

So tell me, what are YOU doing to avoid work? And - my puritanical roots force me to ask - is that actually a worthwhile goal? Or is work - true, hard, not-making-you-so-happy work - valuable?