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Did You Know the Word 'Work' Literally Comes from 'Torture'?

Published:
· 2 min read

Originally posted on LinkedIn

Did you know the word “trabajo” (work in Spanish) comes from the word for “torture” ☠️?

Maria Fernanda Montejo Quiceno taught me yesterday at #GoFest that the word “trabajo” comes from the Latin “tripalium” — which was an instrument of torture 🫠

Then last night I looked it up — it evolved to mean any kind of effort.

We’ve literally been telling ourselves for millennia to work, work, work. Maybe it’s time to tell ourselves something different?

I believe — like Mafe — that we should seek work where we’re good, we feel fulfilled, and we’re productive.

If not, it might just feel like torture 🙈

Mafe is speaking about this TODAY at ~5:20PM at #PlatziConf (rockstar 🧨). Mafe is an Ignia fellow — not a coincidence, she has way too much fire 🔥

▶️ I invite you to check out Mafe’s talk tomorrow. She’s going to crush it. ◀️

Does anyone have more tips/insights for actually “feeling” fulfilled by your work? Does the old “ikigai” thing still hold?

PS: Anyone who wants to connect with Mafe, I’ll make the intro. She’s building a WILD project to turn donated books into higher-education scholarships. A profitable project that sustains a foundation and social mission — the best of both worlds.

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