"The trouble with the rat race is that, even if you win, you're still a rat" Lily Tomlin

In the not-too-distant past, families were expected to sacrifice all in order to obtain the coveted financial security. You could remember those years, or you might not be old enough to remember them.

Back then, spouses and kids would affectionately look at images of the breadwinner to remember whether the poor, worn-out Dad had blue eyes or brown, as climbing the corporate ladder was a revered occupation.

Big corporations relocated workers from one place to another like pawns on a chessboard, and if you wanted to travel from Chicago to Boston to New York to Tokyo and advance to senior management positions, you had to pick up your family and leave.

Fathers lost contact with their families, the divorce rate increased, and they began dying suddenly from heart attacks and strokes. These individuals felt useless and unproductive after retiring.

These men's identities have grown inexorably linked to their professional accomplishments over the years. New retirees began to question about themselves, including who they were and why they were sharing a home with women they knew nothing about. And what happened to those adorable children that once resided in the house?

After that, women started working seriously and joined the rat race.

Look at the evidence of stress-related sickness and death, a growth in the average number of hours worked by employees in the U.S. and around the world, and soaring rates of divorce and single-parent households lest you assume that this rat race has come to an end.

And let's not overlook those of us who are in charge of taking care of elderly parents.

Our environment is filled with conveniences that were created to provide us more free time. But, it appears that the only thing the media blitz, whirring computers, and information overload have brought us is more time to work.

Men and women frequently put in between sixty and seventy hours a week at their jobs. Some of us put in 80 or 90 hours of work without batting an eye. We also deceive ourselves into believing that we have a life!

If you are among the few who have reached this realization, you already know that sacrificing your social and family life is too high a price to pay for professional success.

You may be fighting with your spouse, boyfriend, or best friend because you spend too little time with the people you care about most, you may not be eating well, and you may have health issues due to stress.

You most likely lack the time to call your aunt on her birthday or send her a card.

Whether you work as a lineman for a utility firm, a pizza delivery lady, a corporate executive, or a want tobe dancer, it doesn't matter.

There is a good chance that you don't have enough time for job, family, or friends in the hectic world of today. Also, your family and friends are probably the ones who suffer because your boss has a tight grip on your money.