It’s easier to complain about our jobs than to find out what we want from life.
I don’t exactly remember when it happened, but one day I finally stopped seeing my job as the villain, an evil-doer who was responsible for my misery. I came to realize that if anything, my lack of action, planning, and commitment to identify a more satisfying line of work, was the true culprit.
O, Microsoft, where art thou?
When I was younger I was always bitter about any position I had the chance to hold. I was always thinking twice before going the extra mile. After all, I was saving my “precious and unique” talent for that great job at Microsoft. I remember how I would go out for lunch as much as I could, simply because I needed to get away from a series of occupations that I felt, were sucking the life out of me.
Then I got married and had kids. The feeling of being exploited by a capitalist system went away only to be replaced with the conviction of being stuck in the rat race. I turned to books and magazines trying to find a way out of what I thought were dead-end jobs. Some of the articles I read would champion the “forward-thinking” idea of quitting your job to pursue your dream. Those pieces caught my attention for some time until it occurred to me that leaving my job to chase something that I didn’t even know what it was, would only make things worse. How was I supposed to pay for rent, gas, food, etc., until the whole “following my dream” would start to pay off?
Know thyself
I then, began writing a series of questions that helped me put things in perspective when it came to understanding that even if my occupation wasn’t exactly thrilling, it was far from being my enemy: What would change for the better if I quit my job right now? How would that benefit my family? How would that improve my chances of getting a better job? How would that improve the odds of finally writing the great American novel? How would that make me a better person? How would that affect my finances? What kind of emotional impact would have on my family? What would happen to my marriage?
Nowadays things are a bit different. I make sure I bring my “A” game to work every day, and I’m not waiting for Google or Amazon to offer me that six-figure job for which I never applied. Of course, I still have some days where I feel less productive than usual, but when that happens, it always helps me to concentrate on doing very simple tasks such as answering emails or updating my calendar. Going through such activities not only provides a sense of completion but also allows me to gather the so much-needed momentum to take on more complex assignments.
Regardless of the kind of day I’m having, I always make sure I make a list of all the projects and aspects of my work that provide a sense of making a meaningful contribution to the position and the company I work for. Finally, I take a look at a little piece of paper pinned to the wall of my cube right in front of where I sit with a message that I jot down which reads: It’s always easier to complain than to do something about it. ☼
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Alex Guerrero is a content creator who lives in Lawrence, KS. He’s very vocal in his displeasure over pineapple pizza. Chocolate, on the other hand, makes everything better!
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