Usually in this context the "work" part is learning new job skills, preparing plans, networking, and that sort of stuff. It could be actual work for your career, like preparing sales presentations for a sales person, or planning a big coding project for an engineering lead, but it could also be time spent educating yourself and building skills needed to get ahead. Everyone here gets so hung up on the people who were born privileged that they completely overlook the people who have actually worked their asses off to build a better life for themselves and their families.