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Part 2&3  An activity you enjoyed in your free time when you were young答案及解析_雅思口语练习「新东方雅思官方网校」

It’s very important yes! Anyone that says people should work like machines and that’s a sign of dedication and diligence is talking nonsense! There was a phase a few years ago when several big bosses of tech companies in China were praising the “wolf” spirit of working and that started a ridiculous phase of some companies working a 996 working week – it was a perfect example of a totally unscientific and impractical idea becoming popular for the sake of basically companies getting staff who would work for them all the hours under the sun at the expense of the rest of their lives. Everybody knows that people perform better at work if they have a good work life balance… with the possible exception of a few individuals, geeks, or CEOs that stand to make more billions if they stay up longer! 

Yes, of course, there is a lot to do today. However, I’m not sure that people take the chances to use their free time productively. Sometimes I feel that when there are less options people appreciate and make the most of their free time more. Today we have so many options, and such a high level of digital connectivity, I think people get lazy – in fact, I think young people spend far too much time on the cellphones and not enough time doing other activities, with other people, in person. 

Some do, some don’t. I think that a lot of people don’t to be honest. I think there is a trend in the past ten years in my country where children and adults are pushed far too hard to supposedly maintain a “higher” standard of living – but in reality, they are just working all hours to try to compete with others in order to maintain the same standard of living and not lose it, or not fall behind others. It’s a shame really. I think this has driven people to lose sight of the value of free time and leisure, and frankly all the work and study efforts are not really worth it for many. Not anymore. 

It depends what types of people you’re talking about. People exercise in different ways. Older people often go to the park, do some dancing or use these simple exercise machines in their communities. Young people do all sorts – they go to the gym, they play basketball, football or other competitive sports… other people like to go jogging, or cycling or … there are lots of popular activities that people do here – pretty much the same as anywhere in the world.

Balancing work and life in China can be tough. The "996" work culture—9 am to 9 pm, six days a week—was common for a while in many industries, especially tech and finance, although I don't think it's allowed any more exactly, I'm not sure. This makes it hard for many to find time for family and personal interests. However, not everyone faces this extreme and as I said, it's not the case anymore so much. Some regions and sectors offer more balanced schedules. There's also a growing push for better work-life balance, with some companies adopting more flexible hours.
In short, while it's challenging for many, there is change continually and hope towards improvement.