When I was younger my whole sense of self-worth was based on whether or not I was working which was awful. And I had a baby at 20 years old so it wasn't just about me. At around the age of 30 there was a stretch where I wasn't working - certainly not on anything I liked anyway - and I started to do other things.
The thing is if you control the Senate meetings you control the gavel. And the gavel is a very important instrument... an instrument of power. An instrument that establishes the agenda.