I'm somewhat amazed by the consensus opinion in this topic. A 40-hour week is about the shortest you could realistically hope for. If I was able to find a well-paid, stimulating job that fit that schedule (which really is incredibly rare) I would be one of the luckiest people on the planet. How is it impossible to have a work-life balance at that rate when you easily have 5 hours of free time a day, on workdays?
I recommend everyone to read this article:
http://www.economist.com/node/21552539
It doesn't fit this discussion perfectly, and I'm not suggesting 40-hour work weeks are found necessarily in low-paying or menial jobs (or even that, depending on your outlook, there is anything wrong with that in the first place). But to think that working more than 40 hours a week will cause great stress and leave you unhappy is a little misguided, to say the least.
Wealth should be but a means to an end. What use is a lot of money if you don't try to improve the life of the common man with it?
You have a very narrow view on life if you really believe this. I applaud your altruism, but what someone does with the money he has earned is his business. If you want to spend your money to help the common man, more power to you. But I see plenty other uses of wealth.
How about being able to care for your family? Being able to send your kids to the best schools? Being able to live in a nice house or drive a nice car? Being able to take your girlfriend/wife to a restaurant occasionally, and to be able to buy her a pretty engagement ring?
Now personally I plan to donate a percentage of my salary to 2 charities and to the Catholic church. But the bigger portion, by far, is for my family and my progeny. And I don't think there's anything wrong with that.
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He who seeks in freedom anything other than freedom itself is made to serve.