Well, "they" (who "they" are precisely, I don't know, but academic researchers somewhere) say typical people have a need for structure (~routine), purpose, and community, in their lives for it to be meaningful/happy. A job can provide all three.
Over reliance on a job for those things is believed to be crux of all the cautionary tales about people who retire (especially involuntarily) and die shortly thereafter.
So there's a lesson there somewhere.