The obvious point, which isn't really mentioned until halfway through can be distilled to one sentence. Life needs to include happiness.
If it doesn't, it's just unhappiness. That's what's toxic. At some point in middle-age you look back on years of unhappiness with (seemingly) only more ahead and then death. For many people that sort of realisation can spell depression, full on breakdown and even suicide.
And of course it's easy to read something like this and over-compensate. Healthy minds —like bodies— need balance. We need time alone, with our families, with our hobbies to relax and enjoy but we also need work to stretch us. Neglect either side of this ledger and you'll suffer.
If it doesn't, it's just unhappiness. That's what's toxic. At some point in middle-age you look back on years of unhappiness with (seemingly) only more ahead and then death. For many people that sort of realisation can spell depression, full on breakdown and even suicide.
And of course it's easy to read something like this and over-compensate. Healthy minds —like bodies— need balance. We need time alone, with our families, with our hobbies to relax and enjoy but we also need work to stretch us. Neglect either side of this ledger and you'll suffer.