Bucknell University: where “work hard, play hard” is the motto.
We know the drill all too well. 9:00 pm Wednesday rolls around and a stampede of students spills out of the library, ready to throw on their Frackets and head to their pregame. We worked hard and now we are ready to play even harder.
It’s an odd thing, this extreme lifestyle, but we’re certainly not alone in our approach. In fact, “work hard, play hard” dates all the way back to 1827, when William Newnham used the saying in The Principles of Physical, Intellectual, Moral, and Religious Education, Volume 2. More recently, it’s a mentality embraced by an older, corporate culture, particularly by companies in the technology industry. Companies like Sun, Tandem, and Cyrix have become known for Friday afternoon “beer busts” that help transcend the boundaries between staff and managerial levels. In other business settings, employees make happy hour a regular way to blow of steam and late night partying has become commonplace at trade shows, conferences and after intense meetings.
Looking through the lens of the corporate culture, two organizational consultants, Deal and Kennedy note, “Fun and action are the rule here, and employees take few risks, all with quick feedback; to succeed, the culture encourages them to maintain a high level of relatively low-risk activity.” (Corporate Cultures, 108) Deal and Kennedy’s observations are eerily representative of our own lifestyles. It makes sense that the work hard play hard lifestyle has spilled over to a college setting, which is often just as demanding as high-profile corporate jobs. It looks like we are just a younger, more angsty version of these corporate “do-it-allers.” But, just because the business world is living this way, should we be?
True, it is essential at a university like Bucknell to work hard. And it is merely part of the human condition to crave fulfillment through socializing. But the problem is not that we work or play. The problem is that so much else falls by the wayside because “work hard, play hard” is all we know. Not only does this mentality leave little room for personal wellness or much needed downtime, it leaves us no room to expand our horizons beyond the history of Medieval Europe or an impressive keg stand.
The saying “work hard, play hard” itself connotes a balanced life, in which all of our occupational and social needs are met. We get something tangible from working hard and playing hard, be it an A on our paper or a great new profile picture. It seems like everything is covered, at least outwardly, in our embrace of this lifestyle. Since we get nothing for taking time to delve deeper, by going to the craft center or attending an obscure lecture, many of us, much of the time, avoid the responsibility entirely. Unless extra credit is involved, we would rather finish our work so that we can go out later then take time to pursue passion or knowledge. It may sound cheesy, and a little bit too much like a self-help book, to urge intellectual curiosity and personal fulfillment. But if we constantly live working and playing, working and playing, working and playing, we’re never going to move beyond a lack of satisfaction.
My very wise, very cool, grandpa always says, “Work hard, play hard, and love with intensity.” We have the first part down. But it seems that we’re missing the last, very crucial bit. We’re working and playing, but ignoring so many opportunities to find passion in areas that fall outside of the classroom or the frat house. We’re not reaching beyond the visible surface; we’re hacking away at it. So I dare you (and me), to drop your pencil or your texting conversation and move beyond the repetition.