Some time ago - cannot remember where I read it - but it was an article about a very successful, very rich, very well respected guy in the finance industry who one day just gave it all up.

He decided to go into repairing cars, bought a small garage in a rural area and never looked back.

His take on it was that people needed to use their hands / bodies and brains to get a better balance of really feeling fulfilled and have pride in their work and themselves - and to feel true contentment.

I believe we have no idea of the pressure that builds up when people are essentially using just their brains to be constantly solving problems, taking complex decisions, worrying for the future, etc and how all of that affects the fine balance between feeling well fulfilled and feeling the whole thing is totally useless.

And in a way, I think just doing some kind of relatively mindless fitness/gym work only adds to that.

But, give a person something like a shed to potter in and plant seeds, go fishing, tinker with an old motor etc and the conflict of constant repetitive brain activity with no physical output is more balanced.

It also doesn't help that we have become so mindlessly materialistic that the pressure to keep getting the latest / best / whatever is perceived to be 'needed' is another contribulary factor to the feeling of it all being utterly useless to contine.

The term 'rat race' is still as prevalent today asa it's always been.