“Again, I saw that for all toil and every skillful work a man is envied by his neighbor. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind” (Ecclesiastes 4:4, NKJV). This verse names a common but rarely admitted motivation for hard work: not purpose, but the desire to be envied.
That’s an uncomfortable thing to recognize in ourselves. Plenty of ambition is fueled less by genuine calling and more by wanting to outperform someone nearby.
The Preacher calls this vanity, empty at its core, regardless of how much skillful work it produces.
Is there a current pursuit of yours that, if you’re honest, is more about being envied than about genuine purpose?