The Pursuit of Pleasures

What Dmitri Mendeleev taught me besides chemistry.

In my A-Level journey, I often struggled with temptations for instant gratification. Whether it was choosing anime over sleep or losing myself in the YouTube rabbit hole, the pursuit of pleasures almost always played a role in my life.

Yes, hedonism. That’s the word.

However, no matter how many days you wasted and the temptations you gave in to, you would definitely feel unsatisfied at some point. Even if you were eager to chill all day, you would find doing nothing gives you nothing in the end.

To that, the Father of the Periodic Table has something to say.

Work, look for peace and calm in work: You will find it nowhere else. Pleasures flit by – they are only for yourself; work leaves a mark of long-lasting joy, work is for others.

—Dimitri Mendeleev

🤨 At first glance, it looks hardcore

At one point, you probably have regarded “work” as something stressful to get over with. We often hear people complaining about working and how much they crave shorter Mondays and longer weekends. Remember #TGIF?

With a strong emphasis on work, it seems our man Dmitri wanted us to spend more time and effort on things that “hurt” us, and neglect what matters more in our lives.

Also, “work is for others” sounds too selfless – what about me (you)? What about self-care? Do we work merely to serve others?

💡 What (I think) Dmitri really meant

When was the last time you truly enjoy working?

Have you ever gotten into the flow so deep that you lost track of time and didn’t feel like stopping?

Was it stressful? Even so, was it rewarding in the end?

Here’s the thing 👇

Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.

—Simon Sinek

Yes, my friend. It all comes down to how you and I define work. While it’s true that working on your passion may not be enjoyable 100% of the time, you’re still far better off with the chaos of life well-lived, than just chaos.

Of course, this works only if you can find peace and calm in work, as Dmitri put it.

🥰 Now, how about pleasure?

As mentioned, and perhaps, as you’ve experienced before, pleasures don’t last forever. You can keep binge-watching Netflix all day and all night, but the joy you’re getting from it depletes with time.

And yes, you can always move on to another form of entertainment to get more temporary pleasures to keep yourself satisfied. But, isn't that reaffirming what Dimitri said?

Pleasures flit by.

On the other hand, if you’re doing what you love and loving what you do, your work is going to bring long-lasting joy and meaning to both you and others. Hence, again,

Look for peace and calm in work.

—Thomas