A Thank You to the Workers And a Reminder to Build Choice

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Tomorrow is Workers’ Day in Portugal. A day to remember workers, labor rights, fair conditions, rest, dignity, and the people who helped build the world we live in.

And honestly, I don’t want to turn that into an “escape work” message. Because work is not the enemy. Work can be honorable, can give structure, and can build confidence, skills, income, discipline, and independence.

A lot of what we have today exists because people worked hard in factories, offices, farms, hospitals, schools, homes, shops, and businesses.

So this edition starts with respect, for work, for workers, and for the rights people fought for. But also with a reminder:

The next level of freedom is not hating work.

It’s having more choice around how, where, why, and for whom you work.

Work Has Dignity

There is dignity in effort, in showing up, in doing what needs to be done, and providing for yourself and your family.

Internet culture makes work sound like a trap by default. I don’t believe that.

A job can be a blessing.

A paycheck can be stability.

A profession can be meaningful.

Not everyone wants to quit their job and build a business. Not everyone dreams of being a founder, freelancer, or creator, and that is completely fine.

Freedom doesn’t look the same for everyone.

For some people, freedom is entrepreneurship.

For others, it’s a stable job with healthy boundaries.

For others, it’s working less, earning better, or simply not being consumed by work.

The point is not to shame work. The point is to make sure your work is serving your life, not replacing it.

“All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

→ Ask yourself: Does my current work support the life I want, or is it slowly taking over the life I want?

Rest Was Fought For

One of the things Workers’ Day reminds us of is that rest was not always treated as a right. People fought for limits, for safer conditions, for fairer treatment, and for the idea that a human being is not a machine.

And yet today, many people still feel guilty for resting.

If they’re not producing, they feel behind.

If they’re not available, they feel irresponsible.

If they’re not pushing, they feel lazy.

But rest is not laziness.

Rest is maintenance, protection, part of a sustainable life.

You can respect work and still respect your body.

You can be ambitious and still need sleep.

You can build something meaningful without burning yourself to the ground.

A life that never pauses is not productive. It’s fragile.

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” — Anne Lamott

→ Small action: This week, protect one block of time with no work, no planning, and no guilt. Let it be real rest.

Fair Pay Matters

It’s hard to talk about work without talking about money. Being compensated properly for your time, skill, energy, and responsibility matters.

There is nothing noble about being underpaid forever.

There is nothing selfish about wanting better conditions.

There is nothing wrong with wanting your work to create stability, not just survival.

This is where financial literacy, negotiation skills, and self-respect all connect.

Sometimes the next step is not quitting, but asking for more: Learning a higher-value skill; Changing environments; Raising your rates; Refusing to normalize being undervalued.

Work has dignity, yes. But dignity also means not accepting less than what your contribution is worth.

“The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.” — Henry David Thoreau

→ Ask yourself: Am I being paid in a way that respects the time and energy this work costs me?

Your Job Can Be a Foundation, Not a Cage

This is important. A job does not have to be your prison. It can be your foundation.

Your paycheck can help you build savings. Your workplace can help you learn communication, leadership, sales, operations, patience, and resilience.

Your routine can give you structure while you prepare your next chapter.

Not every job is meant to be escaped immediately. Some jobs are bridges.

The danger begins when you stop seeing the bridge as temporary and start believing it is the whole destination. That is why I always talk about choice.

Use what you have.

Learn what you can.

Save what you’re able.

Build skills while you’re still supported.

Freedom is rarely one dramatic leap. More often, it is built quietly while no one is watching.

“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” — Theodore Roosevelt

→ Small action: Write down one thing your current work is teaching you that could support your future freedom.

Build Choice, Not Rebellion

This is the core. The goal is not rebellion for the sake of rebellion.

It’s not quitting just to prove a point.

It’s not rejecting structure because structure feels boring.

It’s not pretending everyone should want the same lifestyle.

The goal is choice.

Choice to stay because you want to, not because you’re trapped.

Choice to leave when something no longer fits.

Choice to rest without fear.Choice to negotiate.

Choice to build something of your own.

Choice to work in a way that respects your humanity.

That is real freedom. Not avoiding work. Owning your relationship with it.

“Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better.” — Albert Camus

→ Ask yourself: What is one choice I want to build for myself this year that I don’t currently have?

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Final Thoughts

Workers’ Day is a beautiful reminder that work matters. The people who built, served, created, repaired, cleaned, taught, cared, organized, transported, and protected, they matter.

Workers matter.

And so do their lives outside of work. That’s the part I want to hold onto. Work deserves respect. But so does your time, your body, your family, your peace, and your future.

So no, this is not an anti-work message. It is a pro-dignity message.

A pro-choice message.

A reminder that the goal is not to escape effort forever. The goal is to build a life where effort has meaning, where work has boundaries, and where your time belongs more and more to you.

So tomorrow, honor the workers.

And then ask yourself: What kind of work would make my life feel more free, not less?

Because that’s the work worth building toward.

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See you in a week.

Your Zine.