[FOUNTAIN]Hard work increases a hobby’s fun

The only thing the tenor Luciano Pavarotti and the tennis star John McEnroe have in common is the fact that they are both international celebrities.
They have different nationalities, professions, ages, and personalities. The two seemingly mismatched celebrities were invited to a television talk show together. As they discussed their careers and lives, they talked about their hobbies.
When asked how he relieved the stress of his career, though, Mr. Pavarotti said he played tennis and Mr. McEnroe said he sang. When the tenor gets exhausted from singing, he enjoys playing tennis outdoor, which also serves as physical training. In contrast, McEnroe said that singing lets him relieve the tension from a match and the exhaustion from practice. They each had the other’s profession as a hobby.
Stunned at the discovery, they teased each other about how peculiar the other’s hobby was. Pavarotti could not understand why McEnroe enjoyed singing, which was a hard job for him. McEnroe joked that he could not make out why Pavarotti wanted to break into a sweat and play tennis. At the top of their own fields, the tenor and the tennis star must have suffered from considerable stress to have become successful in their careers.
Kenichi Omae, a Japanese economic commentator who is famous in Korea as well, discovered a relationship between the stress of a job and the pleasure of a hobby at an early age. When he was young, he learned to play clarinet. It was not only a hobby, because he even considered becoming a professional musician.
But he thought that a career as a professional musician would be extremely stressful no matter how much he loved music. In order not to lose the pleasure that his hobby gave him, after long contemplation he decided to take up a career in a field other than music. He still performs and records CD while pursuing a career as an economic commentator.
The pleasure of a hobby is more precious when it is accompanied by the tension and fatigue of work. Mr. Pavarotti might have enjoyed playing tennis more because he was a successful tenor, and McEnroe might have loved singing more because he was a tennis champ. A career is not just about making a living. You can enjoy more when you are working harder.

by Nahm Yoon-ho

The writer is a Family Team head of the JoongAng Ilbo.