In the Dog's job, I hear how people feel they are overworked, frustrated, stressed, and all sorts of other things, and that troubles me. A lot of the stresses of our daily work come and go, and are expected. They come with the job, that's why they call it "work".
But how often do we ask ourselves if the good outweighs the bad, and do we really enjoy our work, our life?
What truly troubles me is when I hear someone say, “I've been here ___ years and I hate my job”, “I’m only here for the paycheck”, and I know they mean it.
What truly troubles me is when I read comments from our front line staff saying that work would be great if it wasn’t for the people… or the receptionist who said, “I can’t stand working with the people who come in here”.
WHAT??????????
My God, how tragic is that for someone’s life? If you are willing to spend half of your waking hours in a place you don’t like, doing a job you “hate”, with people you can’t stand, something is seriously wrong with you.
And, yes, I know all of the “reasons” people need to keep a job, but I wonder if they’re not really just “excuses” with better dressing? “I need to pay my rent!” “I need to feed my family”. “I need to pay my bills”.
Well, yeah, but so do all of us. So, if we are really so unhappy, should those reasons stop us from looking for something better?
Dog Rule: Don’t mistake a reason for an excuse.
And, yes, I know people need to vent and complain, and that’s fine, but all the time and in every conversation? I’m often reminded of Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion commentary, “People here are miserable and they like it that way. When they wake up in the morning and the sun’s shining and the birds are singing and they’re feeling just dandy… they’re not worried because they know it’ll get worse.”
To be brutally honest, I think it’s too easy to sit around and complain than to actually take any action to improve things. We all get trapped in the complacency of the status quo.
Before you write me off as someone who doesn’t know anything about “real life”, let me explain my thought process. The only relevant point of reference for my work and life load capacity is me, myself, and I. That’s true for anyone, by the way. My belief is that I cannot expect more of anyone than I do of myself.
I grew up with parents who both worked for the railroad. I was a latchkey kid living in an ethnically diverse neighborhood (before we even knew what “ethnically diverse” or “latchkey” meant). I got my first real job (meaning not McDonald's or a paper route) when I was 15. I went in the Marines after high school, because college was not even a remote possibility for our income level (or my interest). I grew up and saw the reality of life and death before I could legally have a beer.
During my 22nd and 23rd year, I started a newspaper, got married, and bought my first house.
During my 25th year, I lost my paper and my income. So I started college and found a job in a hospital (I needed to feed my family, pay my mortgage and my bills…;-). Four years later I graduated with a degree in Economics, and a large student loan. During those four years of college, I also held that full-time job and even got promoted.
Does that make me special? Not even remotely close, are you kidding? In fact that story says just the opposite. It tells me that if I can do it, so could most other people. If they actually want to.
I really never thought about being "over worked" or having too much to do. I never worried about money. I guess, in hindsight, I learned what Michael Todd said, “I’ve been poor, but I’ve never been broke. Being broke is a state of mind. Being poor is only a temporary condition.”
Seriously, I never did think about it. Maybe that was a mistake or my own stupidity? But the thought never crossed my mind, as I think back. I just did it. If I hadn't liked what I was doing, I wouldn't have done it. I would have found something else. How dumb was I?
And, I have had my serious failures and losses too, personally and professionally. I learned from all of them. And, I do take it all personally. If you don't take your life, and your work, personally, you're wasting it. It is all personal, and at times painful, but it is all part of living, isn't it?
So, the point of all of that is why would you want to stay in a job you hate? Is the “money” really worth the time and toil on your life? Do you actually enjoy being miserable? Again… seriously… do you? Ask your family… your friends… to tell you honestly if they think you’re happy.
Think about all the pains and problems you have in your life and think of the one thing that all of them have in common (hint: YOU). But you don’t have to be nasty about it. Fix it.
Yeah, you are.
