How will we spend our time when Al and the robots take over?

Meaningful leisure may be the answer.

- Lim Ai Leen

On a trip to Japan a few weeks ago, a friend there confided that she sometimes fantasised about giving up the rat race to become a bath house attendant.

"I wouldn't have to worry about so many things," she explained. “I just sit there, collect the admission fee and hand out towels. How wonderful.”

Ask any of your stressed-out friends, and you will likely get variations of this throw-in-the-towel fantasy. I've encountered a nervous young lawyer wanting to trade places with the receptionist, a burnt-out management consultant turned dogwalker, and even a churchgoing journalist awed by a job ad for Buddhist nuns (starting salary $5,000 a month).

For some, these dreams manifest their true purpose and they find fulfilment in their new vocations. But for most of us, entertaining these escapist “what if” scenarios is just a way to ease the pressure of the moment. It’s akin to asking what you would do if you won the lottery tomorrow.