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Book written on "stolen time". Time "stolen" from employer to pursue own visions.
Jobs are often intellectually and creatively unfulfilling, and life is incomplete without doing something of your own. They can become a battle over personal identity. Many professionals become burned out because, after many decades of work, their salary is the only thing they have to show for it.
Professionals also rarely have control over the political side of their work. "Does what I do even matter?" Many professionals want to make a difference in the world but feel powerless to do so.
Business is increasingly about control and the bottom line. There is more management, scrutiny over the professional's work output, and more anxiety about job security as a result.
Schools are designed to produce politically subordinate, obedient thinkers who do the work they're told to do without questioning the goals. They are designed to churn out cogs for the machine.
Unquestioning people are at an advantage. People who stop and think or contemplate may lose some enthusiasm or slow down compared to their peers. That behaviour can also draw attention to deviant priorities.
But this system that turns potentially independent thinkers into politically subordinate drones is bad for society. It bolsters the power of corporations and other hierarchical organizations, condemning democracy. When employees are there only to extend the employer's will, they become useful only to those hierarchies. This undermines the effort to build real democracy. Organization are also more likely to abuse clients because subordinate employees are not as effective at challenging their employer.