We tend to use the term "work" universally, but it's my experience that there are several kinds of work, and it's useful to distinguish which one you're talking about when having conversations about work.

Type A Work is energy-subtractive - the person doing it generally loses energy - physical, mental, emotional - whilst undertaking it. It is zero-sum at best - an exchange, where life-hours are swapped for dollars or some other form of currency. This kind of work is done as a means to an end - not for it's own sake. And because humans are creatures of habit, doing this kind of work on a set schedule, for a set fee, usually becomes pathological and inertia-driven after a short period of time - a human hamster-wheel.

Type B Work is generally energy-additive - the person doing it for the most part gains energy - mentally & emotionally by undertaking it. Because of this - it is self-sustaining in a way that Type A work is not, and can be done for long periods without stopping. It is mostly enjoyable, and often done for its own sake.

Type B work is powered primarily by creative energy.

Creative energy is difficult to exert control over. Attempting to strictly confine this work - and this energy - to the hours of 9 to 5, Monday to Friday, and extinguish it outside of those hours, is misguided - and is the quickest way to turn Type B work into Type A work.

It is not inherently noble to work. It's particularly foolish to use this idea - that working hard is inherently noble - to justify work which comes at the expense of your own well-being, and the well-being of those who are important to you. A society full of unhappy hard workers is likely not a thriving society.

In a similar vein, it's misguided to discourage those you care about of work that is energy-additive. Asking someone, or yourself for that matter - to "stop working so hard" because they're spending resources on a creative pursuit outside of 9 to 5 Monday to Friday, is in my experience usually a way to exert control from a place of self interest.

Being able to distinguish between these kinds of work, to pursue Type B work without fear or shame (but with some caution), and to align yourself with people (business partners, life partners) who are similarly minded, is a massive life shortcut.

If you're young and creative (entrepreneurialism being a form of creativity), the best way to to do this is..

Get yourself into a position where you can spend most of your time doing Type B work and have your needs met. Make trade offs and sacrifices, but only to the extent that they bring you closer to the end goal.

Ensure whatever path you're on doesn't lock you in to a local maximum that will prevent your future needs from being met. Over time work so that your needs are not just met, but that you have buffer.

Be observant of the forces nudging you incrementally back towards type A work. This will happen naturally unless you intentionally oppose it. And it will be death by many small cuts, not all-at-once.

Practically speaking, this usually means following a path closer to that of a small business owner vs career professional, but not necessarily. The core goal is not to "minimise" the amount of "work" and maximise the amount of "life" in your work-life balance, but for work-life balance to not be something you think about regularly.