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Dear Mr. Zelinski,

Recently, I went on strike, furious with my client, feeling that I was always abused. By striking, I put them in a very compromised position that they'd have no way out of except by meeting my demands, which was a six-figure-dollar amount. They prepared to fight, but it was a lost cause. All I had to do was hold out for a couple of months and they'd eventually give up and I'd be rich! So why couldn't I sleep at night?

One day my sister in-law let me borrow your book, The Joy of Not Working. Three chapters in and I immediately realized what a terrible mistake I was making. My problems weren't with my client at all. They were myself. I had lost my passion for the work months earlier, and as a result I began to find other ways to combat the emptiness in my life: guitar, taekwondo, learning foreign languages, dieting. I wanted to add more, but I couldn't; work blocked the way.

It seems so obvious now, but at the time I was quick to blame the people at work rather than the idea of work itself. Once I put these two parts of my life together, the solution became crystal clear. I called my client at once, explained my position, and we agreed to part on good terms.

Am I nuts? Did I really just pass up a small fortune because I couldn't put up with a little fight? I don't think so. I think I'm richer now because of it. A day lived to its fullest is worth far more than any money you could hope to earn by sacrificing it.

Thanks for helping me see what was always there.

Sincerely,

Thomas Allen

Dear Ernie,

It's Monday and I've taken the day off. I've just finished reading The Joy of Not Working, which I found at the bookstore last Saturday. It's always exciting when a bit of revelation occurs in one's life. After two heart attacks and a near-death cardiac arrest last winter, you'd have thought I'd have gotten the message, but this work ethic doesn't go down easy. So, after six months of near-suicidal depression about work and how much I hated it, I found your book. I can only say, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Best regards,

And sincerely,

Jeffrey Carson

Hello Ernie,

First, this is just to say "Thank you" from all of Africa, andNigeria in particular. The unemployment rate here is terrible but your book has made a difference in our lives.

I just finished reading "The Joy of Not Working." It is the most inspiring book I have read in a long time and it has given me so much comfort and confidence in my self.

I am a student studying Law at the University of Abuja, Nigeria. I still have two more years before I go to law school.

Ever since I got into university I feared a situation of being unemployed after school. I look at successful people in posh cars and extravagant houses and I pray and wish to have it all. I truly felt that in order to attain happiness I must own so much money and work really, really hard. But then I came across your book and that was it for me - no more worry so much about what the future holds for me. Instead, I will enjoy and take advantage of my free time to the maximum.

The part I enjoyed most was "Activities for your Get-a-Life Tree. Guess what? I have outdone you. I added 300 more activities to the list.

Thank you so much. You have changed my life for the better.

Sincerely,

Fatimah. S. Ahmed.

Dear Mr. Zelinski,

I've wanted to write to you since I finished reading your book almost two months ago.

After working for various companies for the past 17 years, I got fed up with the long hours and long commutes and wished for an easier life. Thinking about quitting the company I was working for after being cut down to 3 days a week, I came across your book.

You have written down what I was feeling. Although I am too young to retire, why should I push and stress myself to come home to sleep and start all over again the next day? I had purchased a house by a lake two years ago and didn't have any free time to enjoy the country life I wanted to. By working three days a week, I found that I am able to pay my bills and survive.

Cutting back useless expenses, and doing part-time consulting, I quit my job and never looked back. I am relaxing more, resting on my hammock, and cooking dinner for my wife who is still doing the commute. Although I am back at work, I set my own hours, and am home by 5:00. The summer is coming and I am looking forward to living in relaxation.

Thank you for teaching me that life is worth living and is more than work! I recommend your book to everyone who is looking for a better life.

Sincerely,

Dan Karpf

dear Ernie,

SORRY that it took me so long to reply to the private message you left on my website. i've been away on an open-ended vacation (no work!) since May 2003, so i haven't read private messages for me till now. please feel free to include my poem "The Joy of Not Working" in your book with permission to do so, if it's not too late already. i appreciate your interest in my work. once again, SORRY about the long delay in replying to your message.

 
Van Tu

dear Ernie,

please feel free to use my poem The Joy of Not Working in your book Graffiti for the Soul and on your website www.thejoyofnotworking.com, with proper acknowledgement. i'm enjoying the tropical beaches in southeast Asia at the moment! i'll think of a convenient mailing address and give it to you later. thanks.

Van

hello again, Ernie. i've just thought of something. have you ever explored the idea of living on a tropical beach as a fun way to save money (and to retire early)? life here is very healthy and relaxing because of the cheap cost of living, warm sunshine, lovely beaches, and slow pace of life. i feel so comfortable here that i don't intend to go back to the USA any time soon!

 Van

Ernie

thanks for telling more about yourself. i wish i had read your private message to me in June 2003 instead of June 2004! that's the main drawback of living on a tropical beach: you become very lazy. one reason why i mentioned the idea of living on a tropical beach to you is because i think it may give you some materials for your next book, or at least a new chapter of one of your books. i know of many Westerners (including some of my friends) who would love to be able to retire early and live on a tropical beach, but they have no idea how to go about it. i know how to do it for myself, but i can't teach it to others. unlike you, i'm not a good teacher at all, since i'm an introspective loner by nature. i write mainly to express my own thoughts, feelings, and fantasies. LOL. 

by the way, i'm 45 years old. however, being a Capricorn, i seem to age in reverse, and i'm now much more healthy and athletic than when i was in my 20's and 30's! the outdoor life here has done wonders for my fitness, and i've become the #1 swimmer on the beach here. LOL. i wrote the poem The Joy of Not Working when i was living in California. now my routine is slightly different, since my daytime (from 11 to 5) is spent on the beach on most days. so i guess i've become a full-time"beach boy"...

i read that you were an engineer who semi-retired at the age of 30. well, i was a computer scientist who stopped working in hi-tech at the age of 30 and then retired fully at the age of 40. between 30 and 40, i had to hold a menial government job to avoid starvation, and i really hated it. (the only good thing is that it'll give me a small pension from the age of 50 onward.) so i don't ever want to work again!

 Van

Ernie

T.J.O.N.W. - An Excellent Book. I have only worked a real job for 4 years. I'm 56. I dropped out of Engineering College after 3 years, after going to the Woodstock Festival.

I am now a landlord. I do 100% of the repairs, have good tenants, and do very much enjoy what I do. I have too many hobbies to list including old cars, motorcycles, & boats, coin collecting, reading, bicycling, hiking, buying and selling stuff, etc. I have a junk store that is really just a hobby. I also finished building my first house deep in the woods mostly from scourged materials and solitary "labor." Now I'm starting a second one. I have a house in the mountains and another one two blocks from the ocean in S.C. I guess to some people I am living The Life of Riley. I have no time for a real job.

Baqus    

Dear Mr. Zelinski,

I felt like contacting you after having read your book The Joy of Not Working. Well, I couldn't agree more with most of the material in the book. It seems like we've transformed this planet to a planet of slaves. They train us in schools to become slaves and then they suck us dry in the "war"king environment.

I was a workaholic myself starting from school because that was the mentality imposed upon me. That, later in my life started to affect my health.

After having worked for a decade for the Greek Power Corporation I am currently in the process of leaving it. I am lucky enough to have secured the basics for my survival for the rest of my days and hopefully I won't have to work a single day, at least not in the classic sense of the word. I do agree that there's a multitude of things to do on this planet but the only thing people are after is money. Especially in the U.S., workaholism and chasing money seem to be the national sports. Fortunately, things are changing - slowly yes - but they are changing.

Someday you should visit Greece where leisure is our national sport and about the only thing we are good at. Greece is the ideal place to have a good time. Why not have a good life with not so much money?

Respectfully,

Dimitris Floridis

Hello Ernie,

It's a sunny Sunday in Athens and I am enjoying my coffee on the balcony. I want to send a lot of thanks to you for being the answer to my fears about money, jobs, and retirement. In this crazy world, in which practically everyone kills himself trying to keep useless jobs, you are teaching us important life lessons.

Ernie, I worked in a big, big company in Greece, but I recently opened my own shop. Guess what? The stress doesn't kill me anymore. I have to do thousands of things every day, but in I still spend time on the  beach,  read magazines,  visit museums, etc.

What happened in Asia  - liked all the disasters - teach us that our lives are soooooooooo short

Keep up the good work.

Ilia Kothra - Greece

Ernie,

I read your book "The joy of not working" and enjoyed it very much. The title only tells part of the story, as it ought to be called something like "How to be better at, and enjoy leisure, work, other pursuits, and life in general," or something like that. At long last I see there is someone else out there with some good common sense about balance in life. In the following paragraphs I have some observations and comments to share with you.

Before going on further I'll tell you something about my background, as it is similar to yours. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, I worked with the utility Ontario Hydro as an engineer. All went "normal," or what at least passes for normal until the restructuring started in 1993. Meanwhile, the Ontario Government of Bob Rae (NDP) was facing a budget shortfall and decided to solve their problem by reducing workers' hours in the form of unpaid days off (Rae Days). What a great idea I thought, hoping this also would happen with Hydro. It didn't happen (too bad), and Rae Days also came to an end in 1995 with a change of government. That same year, Hydro had a voluntary reduction plan to get rid of staff, of which I took advantage. Wow, 70 weeks salary just to quit! Since then, I've been back three times to the successor companies as a temporary employee (including presently working at Hydro One) and have worked other places also. More importantly, I've had time off between jobs to relax, travel, pursue other interests and generally enjoy life. If I knew what I know presently, I would have still mad this excellent choice. As a result, I may be financially poorer, but am richer in every other way. Presently, I find myself more relaxed and less stressed out, healthier and more fit, more informed on many subjects, and more well-rounded. Never again will I go back to the ball and chain and drudgery of working full time. Of course, your book has further reinforced the idea that I am on to something good. How about you, are you still enjoying your retirement?

What's wrong with us here in the 21^st century? There are more time-saving inventions than ever before, more wealth than ever before, and higher worker productivity than ever before and yet we're working longer hours than ever before in history and burning ourselves out in the process. When unions renegotiate contracts, why are they not pushing for more time off? Better yet, why is no one pushing for reduction in work hours instead of cutting staff when companies are having financial trouble? (Remember Nortel and Bombardier recently.) Based on what I've seen, our society is long overdue for a shorter work week. We seem to live to work rather than work to live, and are not enjoying it at all. We also appear to want to give up our time and life energy to buy more "stuff" to clutter up our living space (Did you ever hear that George Carlin skit about "stuff?" It's funny and accurate). Add to that our obsession with junk like gas-guzzling SUVs. It's like our motto is: "Whoever has the most stuff when they die wins." What ever happened to the hippies of 1970s generation that wasn't into materialism?

There are those who believe (quite wrongly) that a shorter work week would be bad for the economy. The reality is many hours of work are wasted in non-productive pursuits like gossip, office politics, complaining, and other ills which are actually caused by the long hours. It's like a hydro turbine that produces 50 MW of mechanical power, but uses 40 MW of power overcoming internal drag. If we worked shorter hours, there would be less stress-related illness which would save a fortune in Medicare costs. The reduced hours could be turned into more jobs for those who are out of work, and reduced the social costs of unemployment. There would be a lot less anger showing itself in rude manners like road rage. The whole arrangement would be a win-win situation for all. What do you think of these ideas?

I have another comment, or perhaps a question. There is a myth out there about people who retire and are bored with nothing to do. Is this idea true or is it another myth like one about the carburetor which would give a full-size American car 200+ MPG, which was never marketed because oil companies bought up the patents. I've been "retired" many times over the last 8 years and can tell you I absolutely LOVE it! The only reason I work periodically is to recharge my financial portfolio, and prefer not to work the warmer months of the year. Work often gets in the way of other pursuits I would rather be doing. In this age where we are so overworked, I think we baby boomers should be eagerly looking forward to the relief and reprieve of retirement.

Last, but not least, some day (when retired again) I may write a book about my findings, as you have done. When that time comes, I may ask you for some ideas and hints on how to go about it. Who knows, if enough of us spread the word of a better way to live, it could have quite a beneficial effect on the world.

Keep up the good writing!

Doug Payne

Timmins, Ontario

Dear Ernie Zelinski

I read your book "THE JOY OF NOT WORKING." It changed my free time, my way of thinking, and my life. Before I read the book, I didn't like myself very much. But I changed, and began to be happier. Thank you very much.

I tried to expand my "Get-a-Life Tree" to over 50 activities. It took three days. One activity was to write a letter to you. This is my first letter in English. Writing a letter in English is a very creative activity for me.

I started to work at a hospital as a medical technologist last spring. I enjoy playing piano, walking, reading your book again and again, and so on. I want to send another letter to you. So I have to learn English harder.

See you.

Yours

Junko Ogata

Dear Mr. Zelinski

I'm a Japanese graduate university student. My major is social policy and I'm studying about change of lifestyle such as "down-shifting."

I read your book "The Joy of Not Working" recently and I sympathized with your book, because I have eight years' experience working.

I heard that many American and Canadian people become "down-shifters." Some cases have been reported by the Japanese media. Your book made me cheerful and offered me a chance to study at university. The purpose of this letter is to say thank you.

Although I don't know whether I can graduate in two years, I'll remember that I can always strike a balance between work (my present work is studying) and life. Plus, I enjoy being alone.

Well, I'll later try to write to you as a member of the down-shifters.

Sincerely,

Akiko Kajitani

Dear Mr. Zelinski,

I just finished reading The Lazy Person's Guide to Success, and enjoyed it just as much as your book, The Joy of Not Working. At age 55, with no money or other advantages, I've been semi-retired for 26 years.

Back then, I decided that working full-time so I might someday enjoy a leisurely retirement made no sense, so I deliberately limited my work hours to about 25 per week. Now, instead of looking forward to retirement, I find I already have a lifestyle that I can continue for the rest of my life - and I'm writing a book to motivate others to do the same.

Your books are more than an inspiration; they're a validation that the conventional wisdom about working in our culture is far from wise. Thank you for the insight.

Sincerely,

Dixie Darr

Hi Ernie,

First, I'm sorry for my bad English. I'm Spanish. I'm 35 and in April I lost my job after 14 years. I've just finished your book "El placer de no trabajar." (I don't know if the English title would be "The pleasure of not working.") It was very interesting for me. I will try to follow a lot of its recommendations. For example, writing this letter - I don't remember when I wrote the last one.

Thank you very much for this book. It is already a part of my life.

With best wishes,

Eva

Hi Ernie,

I read TJONW over my vacation time as I needed a break from my studies. (Before vacation, while browsing through a bookstore, I chanced upon your book. After reading the first chapter, I discovered that it was not the quick read it appeared to be and that I needed to spend more time with it to enjoy it.) I'm glad that I was led to read your book now, and not years later.

I feel my experiences thus far, as well as my responses to your book, are quite different from the letters cited in it and this has increased my desire to write to you. Still a student, and still hanging on to my idealistic views (forever, I hope), I have always regarded time as much more valuable than money. I also regard unenriching, tedious work as a waste of time. I have never regarded work as a means to receiving money; however, maybe I had begun to see work as solely a means to scientific pursuits and of improving my surrounding environment. I have realized that I do want my work to be at least enjoyable as it is intellectually stimulating and beneficial. Part of my plan is to utilize summers (the months without an "r") not for work, but maybe for a different kind of work. After studying all year, the last thing I need in my summer is an indoor job, so I decided a few months ago that I would stop talking about how much I want to take boating classes, and to finally do it. (I'm very excited.)

I wanted to write, not because I have re-defined work, but because I have re-defined leisure. I have discovered that, for me, leisure is not about the type of or difficulty of an activity, but the pace at which I am able to undertake it. When I create my own pursuits and associated goals, it's leisure for me, regardless of the nature of my pursuits. When I'm pressed with opposing deadlines, and I am not my own boss, then it becomes work.

I have recently come up with a new definition of leisure as any activity which is both enjoyable and has no imposed time. Thus, living leisurely may include one's work, and the definition is free of any association with money, or activity type. A student's life can be difficult and stressful, but I love challenging myself and I love the dual nature of my degree-Environmental Biology and Chemistry. However, I do immensely dislike deadlines and I also do not react well to the stress and pressure of the exam situation. Like most students, I do my best to cope with these circumstances.

I have recently come to terms with the fact that I'm not going to discover it all. So why not take my time and go at my own pace? I still have issues with not feeling like I am doing enough, and sometimes I feel that I'm not enjoying the beauty of this world, BECAUSE I am so preoccupied with trying to understand how it all works. Questions like: What is a flame? Why do we see colors? Why is red . . . red?

I have recently diagnosed myself with "philosopher's disease." It is an absorbing, somewhat lonely, and often misunderstood affliction, but I am not seeking its cure. I do not wish to be a philosophy major, as I enjoy having something (like history or science) to ground my philosophical musings to. While reading your book, the Zen section led me to what I consider a potential evolutionary hypothesis. I will let you know what comes of it.

My favorite leisure activities are split between quite activities - like reading, writing, thinking, sleeping, bathing, and eating - and active activities - mainly dancing, singing, playing guitar, and painting. I hope to add more physically demanding (fitness) activities to this list. Although thin, I have never been the sporty type. I see to always drift toward more solo activities (like dancing and ice skating). My favorite indulgence is to go out and spend hours eating one meal. It does not have to be pricey or a large meal. I have often spent two hours eating a moderately-sized meal. I enjoy fully experiencing the flavor of each bite, especially when there is variety and each bite differs.

I think more people need to learn not just to enjoy the moment, but to slow down and expand the moment. As you said, "give the activity . . . your fullest attention (page 140). I write to you with the new definition for leisure because I have realized that, for me, leisure does not conform to the definitions of work and play. I enjoy my studies and I feel a NEED to explore the mysteries of science, just as I feel a NEED to read, write, dance, sing, eat, bathe, and sleep. My work fits in with my other needs . . . with the only difference being that my work is filled with deadlines. As a student, I am somewhat powerless, but I am hoping to become independent of these artificial constraints as soon as I can. I need to feel more leisurely in my work and experience fewer deadlines, to be able to learn at my own pace. Otherwise, I fear I could lose my ability to appreciate the world, the way I savor the flavor of a salad.

I have often felt that I was an anomaly, but now I see myself as a self-actualized eccentric. I work because there is so much I want to change in the world around me. If I was comfortable with our current ways, I would probably be content to swim and bask in the sun, listening to Ella Fitzgerald for the rest of my days. For now, I must also strive to improve what I can, while, of course, taking the time to enjoy what already is.

Thank you for your wonderful book. I am looking forward to your reply.

Nuria

Dear Ernie,

I just didn't want your books to end. I read with much enthusiasm The Lazy Person's Guide to Success and The Joy of Not Working. They both made me happy inside. Finally hearing that it is okay to not like working and not feeling lazy for enjoying time spent slowing my pace of life.

I'm 31 and so far I've managed to keep my working life to a minimum. After getting a degree in printmaking, I went to SAIT [Southern Institute of Technology] to study for a "real" job and ended up as a draftsperson for a homebuilder. I was feeling pretty trapped with my "career," finding my work repetitive, boring and unful