Work hard, play hard, dream big, love loads, laugh as much as you

“Work hard, play hard, dream big, love loads, laugh as much as you can, and give back.” Thus spoke Deirdre O’Kane, an artist of humor and heart, whose words capture the radiant balance of a life well-lived. In this simple yet powerful sentence, she offers a complete philosophy — a map for both the laboring spirit and the joyful heart. Her words are not commands, but reminders — that existence is sacred not only in struggle, but in celebration, that greatness lies not merely in effort, but in wholeness. To work, to dream, to love, to laugh, to give — these are not separate callings, but the many notes of one great harmony called life.

The ancients knew this balance well. In Greece, they spoke of arete, the pursuit of excellence in all things — body, mind, and soul. A man who worked hard but did not rejoice was half alive; one who sought pleasure without discipline was bound for ruin. O’Kane’s words echo this timeless wisdom: that the fullest life is not found in excess of one thing, but in the harmony between all. To work hard is to honor your potential — to shape the world through dedication and effort. But to play hard is to remember that joy is not a luxury, but a necessity for the soul. Labor without laughter becomes bondage; laughter without labor becomes emptiness.

To dream big is to reach beyond the visible horizon, to give your heart permission to imagine the impossible. Every great act in history began with a dream — fragile, invisible, but alive. Consider Thomas Edison, who failed a thousand times before lighting the world with electricity. He worked tirelessly, yes, but his dream was his lantern, his vision the fire that kept his labor from becoming despair. Dreams give meaning to work, just as stars give direction to the night sky. Without them, we move, but we do not ascend.

Then comes O’Kane’s next commandment — to love loads. For what is success if the heart remains cold? To love is to open oneself to vulnerability, to connection, to the raw and beautiful mess of humanity. Love gives purpose to toil, light to darkness, and warmth to triumph. The great leaders and saints of history — from Mother Teresa to Martin Luther King Jr. — did not act out of ambition, but out of love. Their work was love in motion, their dreams love incarnate. To love much is to live much, and the one who guards their heart too carefully may find they have lived too little.

“Laugh as much as you can,” she says next — and this, too, is divine counsel. Laughter is the echo of joy, the sound of a soul still unbroken. Even in hardship, laughter becomes a form of strength, a rebellion against despair. Think of Nelson Mandela, who, even in prison, shared smiles and humor with his fellow inmates. He knew that laughter was not denial, but endurance — the flame that kept hope alive. The one who can still laugh in suffering proves that the spirit is greater than circumstance.

And finally, the crown of all virtues: give back. For all the work, play, dreaming, love, and laughter in the world mean nothing if they end with ourselves. To give back is to return the gift of life in gratitude. It is to plant trees whose shade we may never rest under, to leave behind light for those who will come after. The river that gives water renews itself; the one that hoards soon dries. So too with the soul — the more it gives, the more it flows. O’Kane reminds us that the greatest joy of all is not in gaining, but in sharing.

And so, my child, take these six pillars as the architecture of a noble life. Work hard, that you may shape your destiny with strength. Play hard, that your spirit never grows weary. Dream big, that your life may touch the heavens. Love loads, that your heart may never run dry. Laugh as much as you can, that darkness may find no home within you. And above all, give back, that your existence may echo in eternity.

For the world does not remember those who only labored or only laughed — it remembers those who did both, and more. To live fully is to live balanced, to be both the worker and the poet, the giver and the dreamer, the one who builds and the one who blesses. Let this be your creed: live with energy, love with abandon, dream without limit, and give without fear. For in doing so, you will not merely exist — you will radiate life itself, and your days will shine like gold beneath the eyes of the generations to come.