To each his own ..

Each person has a unique way of working. Each one attaches different values to different aspects of their work life :

- What they do
- How they do
- Who asks them to do
- How much for what they do
.. and many many more

What they do : Technology
Some people get hung up on the technology or content aspect of their work and make a strong distinction between 'good work 'and 'bad work' - cool work and crappy work etc. They want to work on the latest technologies because they happen to be the cutting-edge technologies, not because they are better suited for the particular work. Technology becomes the end goal rather than a means to achieve a goal.

How they do : Process
Some people are all gung-ho about the proper way of doing things. All they care about is that the process be defined, followed, created, reproducible, documented and the like. While it is all for the good, they sometimes (oftentimes) lose sight of the fact that these process are created for a purpose and are not the purpose in themselves .

Who asks they to do : Hierarchy
Then there a people who would do/not do a certain task depending on who ask them to do it. It can usually be assumed that something coming from your parents/Sr. management etc is more serious than your friend/colleague etc. saying the same thing. Nothing really wrong in it. The pain comes during the crunch times when the luxury of the message coming 'through-proper-channels' isn't necessarily there.

How much for what they do : Money
I don't care about what you make me work on as long as you pay me and pay me well! All very well except that this becomes the very reason for doing the least wanted job and eventually never grow out and above - even in the monetary sense - the very reason which made you take this job in the first place becomes the reason you get stuck.

Each person needs to find the right balance of all that is important to them and their work in their job spheres.