Defining an Identity

In the movie Fight Club, there is a scene where a convenience store assistant is asked at gun point "The question, Raymond, is what did you want to be?" In the movie Hitman, Agent 47 tells us he is going off to do "What I do." Both of these approaches to life are interesting, especially when you consider that in both cases, we are finding out about their job. In the case of Raymond K Hessel (Fight Club) his identity was bound up in the job; he was going to be a Veterinarian. In the case of Agent 47 (Hitman) his job was merely a job, an almost all consuming job at the start of the movie, but by the end, just an unwanted job.
The difference is in how it's referred to. In the first case, it was what he was, in the second case, it was what he did. We all understand both of them to be the same and yet there are major differences that go beyond the syntax. One happens when it is your source of identity and the other happens when it impinges upon what your source of identity would rather be; no prizes for guessing which is which. Both can be dangerous.

We all understand 'working for the weekend'. This is a danger that we can fall into all to easily when a job is what we do. It comes with an attitude of TGIF and can lead to almost medical cases of Mondayitis, a serious condition through most of Australia.
However, on the other hand, along with different fingers, it is also true that when a job description is what you is, that's all you are. At this point you lose track of other things that happen - like life.