As summer winds to an end you may find yourself thinking about the vacations you took or didn’t take. For the most part we stayed in New York this summer to work and play close to home.

By comparison we seem to be pretty normal. U.S. workers are taking fewer and fewer vacation days all the time; we certainly have less time off than our European counterparts.

We all want more time to ourselves, more time with our friends and families, more time to do the things we love to do that we don’t consider work…but what about when work is what you love to do?

The problem isn’t that people don’t get enough time off; it’s that people aren’t doing the right kind of work.

Instead of working jobs we hate that we can’t wait to get away from, we should try to limit the disparity between “work” and “life.” What you do should be who you are.

Look for jobs that stimulate the areas of your creativity and expertise you want to enhance and share with other people. You can feel like you’re living even when you’re working.