Book review #7: “Laziness does not exist” by Dr. Devon Price
I stumbled upon this book after I quit my corporate job last year. “Laziness does NOT exist” reading this title not only intrigued me but also relieved me because I felt I was being “lazy” by not choosing to look for the next job immediately (more on this in another blog post).
Dr. Price is a social psychologist. On its surface, this book traces the historical, cultural, political, and economic background of “laziness”. However, as one moves ahead in the book one realizes that in simpler words this is a story of ordinary people like you and me who have been pushed to the cliff of stress by the ever-spreading epidemic of capitalism. What mainly caught my attention is Dr. Price's emphasis on how callously the term “lazy” is used in our society. It is never used as an attribute to describe the strengths of a human being. Maybe of a sloth, yes, but of a human? No way. No one wants to be labeled “lazy”.
Dr. Price begins to bust the myth of laziness in this entire book, calling it “the Laziness Lie” and going on to describe what that means, where this lie originated from, and how we can take better care of ourselves in a world that cannot stop labeling someone lazy when their choices make a significant crack in the thick glass of capitalism.
Reading this book made me feel not only relieved but also sad that I think I cannot make the necessary changes to how I live my life. As if I am so tethered to the unwritten rules of society that I can do nothing more than curse them. Well, guess what, I (and you ) CAN begin to do more than just blame society or its unrealistic and stressful rules. This brings to mind a prize acceptance speech I recently heard on YouTube. It was given by the science fiction author Ursula K. Le Guin, who said the following golden words of wisdom. The Speech
We live in capitalism, its power seems inescapable — but then, so did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings.
Resistance and change often begin in art.
Very often in our art, the art of words.
The power of the unwritten rules of society CAN be resisted. But it comes with a price, and that price is leading a simple life, a life untethered by flashy displays of wealth, possession, or professional/academic achievements. A life of joy in the here and now, unconditional happiness and patience.
I will keep this book review as simple as possible, because I HIGHLY RECOMMEND you all read it for yourself i.e. BUY the book and/or gift it to your loved ones. Why is this book not a bestseller yet? I will tell you why, because reading this book would mean smashing all the old stinky ideas that have been fed to us, it will coerce us to think for ourselves and that is not something the powerful, wealthy, and selfish world leaders want.
The following quotes with my reflections on them are how I can best sum up five good reasons to read this book:-
Number ONE
One of the major factors that caused the Laziness Lie to spread throughout the United States was the arrival of the Puritans1 […] long believed that if a person was a hard worker, it was a sign that God had chosen them for salvation. It was very important to the colonies’ wealthy and enslaving class that they find a way to motivate enslaved people to work hard, despite the fact that enslaved people had nothing to gain from it. Enslavers made it a point to keep enslaved people as busy and exhausted as possible out of fear that idle time would give them the means to revolt or riot. This worldview became the foundation for American capitalism.
The Laziness Lie started as a very convenient modus operandi of the wealthy. Most corporate firm jobs in the 21st century are the same as Dr. Price mentions in the excerpt above: working my pants off to make the rich richer.
Number TWO
Why do we view people as lazy when they have so much on their plates? One reason is that most human suffering is invisible to an outside observer.
I think I know everything about the people in my life, my near and dear ones included. The truth is I don’t know what I don’t know. How can I possibly jump to conclusions about another person’s seeming laziness when I do not even have enough information? Compassion for others (and myself) begins with asking this very question.
Number THREE
The Laziness Lie teaches that the harder you work, the better a person you are, but it never actually defines what an acceptable level of “hard” might look like. By forever moving the goalpost and never actually allowing a person to be vulnerable and have needs, it’s setting us up for failure right from the start.
I like how Dr. Price makes these thought-provoking points. It makes me wonder what “hard work” looks like to me. Does it mean feeling tired all the time but getting consistent praise from my bosses? If on the one hand, my boss praises me, which makes anyone feel good; but on the other hand, I am almost always tired, is it worth it?
Number FOUR
We were not made to work for a full eight hours per day, despite that being considered the reasonable, “humane” workday length in much of the world. […] Researchers consistently find that in office jobs, people are capable of being productive for only about three hours per day, on average. Link to the article on this […] This has nothing to do with willpower or “laziness”; instead, it has everything to do with how the human brain fundamentally works.
This might be something people already know, but knowing how the human mind and body work and doing something better for oneself with those facts can be bridged with practice, patience, and compassion. It is impossible to quit a job just because it involves a 45-hour work week. At the same time, only because “it is what it is” does not give anyone the right to ruin their well-being or that of others. Read the book to know how to handle and live around (instead of “with”) the Laziness Lie.
Number FIVE
Over the decades, research has demonstrated that finding time to sit still, be nonproductive, and become attuned with one’s emotions can be therapeutic and improve a person’s physical and mental health. […] when we savor our free time and work to move at a slower, lazier, more intuitive pace, we begin to repair the damage that years of overwork has done.
This world we live in frowns upon “resting”. Rest always has to be earned. “Do not waste time” is a common jibe made at “lazy” people. How will we know how beneficial stillness is to human beings if we do not even let ourselves experience it?
Dr. Devon Price’s book “Laziness Does Not Exist” makes readers question the very idea of laziness at its core. Is everything the world tells us true? Is it not about time to think for ourselves, allowing ourselves to explore, learn, and live better? Reading this book has been the biggest form of caring for my well-being. I hope you are encouraged to do the same. But before you do that, I hope you can be “lazy”.
https://www.history.com/topics/colonial-america/puritanism#who-were-the-puritans
Very well written!
👌👌👍