I think what the theme for.me and my urge to optimize is, is that I like to automate/optimize processes that I hate doing repeatedly, while processes that I like doing are allowed to be inefficient (e.g. i make.my filter coffee by hand using a hand grinder).
If you optimize things on a personal level you yourself are responsible for what to do with the newly won spare time.
On a society level this is different however, because not working means no job and no job means no money. If they make the job you did more efficient by optimizing and automating all the bits you liked and leave you with all the bits you hated (and a lower wage), you will have a hard time cheering over the optimization.
Watching some people do their daily work so inefficiently makes me squirm - I look away.
However I've seen that drive for efficiency in a wide range of professions: it definitely isn't peculiar to engineers (e.g. the shortcuts a chef learns).
I also explicitly deoptimise some things so I can enjoy them more e.g. varying routes.