Doing something you enjoy at times of your own choosing and making a living from it: now tell me, is that work?

The reason laziness is rarely pushed as a lifestyle option is down to one simple reason: money. There are fortunes to be made out of active lifestyles. Gyms charge fees. But no one is going to make money out of sleep. It is free.

Laziness works. And the simple way to incorporate its health benefits into your life is simply to take a nap.

Guilt is also a way for us to express to others that we are a person of good conscience. 'I feel really guilty about getting drunk last night,' we say, when in actual fact we feel no guilt whatsoever or, at least, we could choose to feel no guilt. When people say to me, 'I drank too much last night,' I always reply, 'I drank exactly the right amount.

We have become so obsessed by numbers and by bottom lines that beauty and truth has been knocked aside.

The idea of a government is to create an ordered, willing work force where there's no trouble. I think idlers are generally seen as potentially dangerous because they're asking questions.

Life is about recapturing lost freedoms.