21: Case Study: How Can I Find Meaningful Work Without Sacrificing My Lifestyle?

Designing a career that honours both purpose and practical realities

Nathan hit me with a question that cuts to the heart of modern work-life tension:

"I've chosen to leave my comfortable position in consulting to seek more meaningful, purposeful work that is aligned with my personal values and lifestyle choices. The problem is, such work seems few and far between, and in tension with my preferred lifestyle and various costs (monetary and otherwise) associated with raising a family in one of the major world cities."

Many of us have felt this exact squeeze – caught between wanting work that matters deeply to us while also maintaining the lifestyle we've built, especially with family responsibilities. It's easy to frame this as a simple trade-off: meaningful work or comfortable living? But that framing itself might be the problem.

In this case study, I'll walk through how to dissect this tension using multiple thinking frameworks, revealing ways to design a life that honours both meaning and practical realities.