Collectively we do so many things for money, attention, to feel important or praised. But what if you woke up one morning and realised that what you were doing was pointless and emotionally unrewarding?

Many people define themselves by what they do, either because of habit, fear, or not knowing what to do next. Businessmen get up every day and have to deal with unmotivated staff, reluctant investors and a product range that the world doesn’t really need. If they stop, what is left to them?

I must be one of the few people who fired himself from a CEO job because I had run out of ideas, felt drained and exhausted, and realised that unless someone younger, with energy, took over the enterprise would go down the drain. It was scary, simply resigning. What else could I do? Who wanted a former company director, who, if taken on, might be a bossy threat to those in charge? Were my skills marketable? How was I to pay the mortgage? There are hosts of ex-managers who become “consultants”, and then feel insecure and isolated, however hard they try. If you are selling your services you cannot be doing; and if you are doing,you cannot be selling. We are slaves to the need for income and status, and there is not a lot we can do about it. Except?

Except to find something that is exciting, demanding, but emotionally rewarding. For me it is musical composition, and it makes me happy. For others it might be going back to school to learn something new or to work for a charity. Speaking personally, getting out of running a business was the best thing I ever did. Epicurus put the happiness of the individual above all else, including money. Nice if you can achieve it.

What would you do if you could?