Six days a week, I toil. I allow myself to relax for one day a week. The rest of the week, I toil. I think diligent work is important. Quietly working away at the profession we have chosen for decades we eventually reach success and that success looks different for everyone. One thing is certain: There are no shortcuts in life and, as Friedman said, "there is no such thing as a free lunch." By the sweat of your brow you shall toil.
We must enjoy the work even if it is challenging. Whistle while you work. I believe in stretching yourself beyond what you thought possible. We all have limiting beliefs which creep up and, for some, these beliefs set in earlier in life than can be managed without intervention. Either way, we must work.
I also think that sometimes people choose work that is harder for them given their proclivities. This work may still be worthwhile or it may be harder than it was worth but in the end we get the satisfaction of having tried.
In the end, we enjoy the harvest. Whether that harvest is grandchildren, retirement, peace and quiet, or the accomplished feeling of having done a big thing. The question of whether we are living a life worth living is ever present. In reality, we must enjoy the harvest. Maybe we are enjoying the barley harvest and later on we enjoy the wheat harvest. It is always either time to care for the fields or reap its rewards. After all, we are meant to work.