(^THIS DOESN'T HAVE TO BE YOU^)
Preface:
Do you ever sit at your desk painfully bored, speculating the meaning of life more than the computer screen, cry(...like ALL the time), feel eternally uninspired by your day's itinerary, hate Pam in client relations for her bloody haircut, use the toilet 2.3 times more than necessary, look at the welcome sign and shudder, or just crawl with frustration and anger everyday? Yeah I've been there, and it's f*cking soul destroying when you know you're semi wasting your life, investing (energy, sweat and tears) into something that doesn't fulfil you. A big thing to note here is that 'millennials' have raised the bar particularly high by seeking happiness, purpose, fulfilment, (free food) and regular validation in a job, so, thank yourself if you are one.
Stage 1: Let's Outline the Aim
We wana get y'all to top job happiness and fulfilment; you smile when you wake up on Monday, you gain energy in the environment you're in, you feel like your labour is a good trade for the satisfaction in return, you're not in it (purely) for the money, you're spurred on by your learning and the challenges, you sometimes get butterflies when a new project pops up, and lastly, you feel connected to the world as if you're where you're meant to be – ahhhhhh.
Stage 2: Possible Warning Signs
-A physical pain in your chest that's tight and burdensome, like going for a run in winter after 3 months off... but with an emotional undertone-A frequent headache
-The urge to well up quite a lot
-You feel SOOO ready vent to friends and family more than usual every week
-You feel negative vibes from people, more than you feel positive vibes
-You return home regularly feeling underwhelmed by what you achieved. i.e. 'If I died tomorrow, I literally put a presentation together on the number of pieces of bread consumed in 13 days over the Christmas period. Chr*st, is that my legacy?!'
-A incessant yearn to email in sick but can't bring yourself to, due to your high morality levels
-Alcoholically drinking the pain away... or masking your feelings in other ways like shopping, overeating or cleaning the kitchen cupboard too often
-You buzz off your nips at the weekend and hit a low come Sunday night
-You bite the heads off your loved ones or become more passive aggressive towards them for no reason
-SKY-HIGH procrastination levels; pushing off responsibilities after surfing the net for 5 hours and self-inflicting unnecessary time pressure ( so you then hate and blame your work situation more)
-Work issues swim around your mind at night so you get little-to-no sleep, thus go in like the Grinch
Caveats:
- FIRSTLY, it's important to give these time because if they're one-offs or fleeting, you may not have an overarching job problem – it may be the project.
- Secondly, it could be seasonal depending on the nature of your work – like the heftier summer/Christmas periods (stick it out if the other glorious months outweigh them..? If not proceed to stage 3).
- Thirdly, M.O.T your life in totality to check these don't stem from anything else; relationships, family or personal health issue. Be sure.
- Fourthly (is that a word?), it could be an industry-wide problem so worth researching other organisations or speaking to people in the same field to check if you need to swap ships.
My Most Important Flags Were...
-I didn't feel righteous. I knew more clearly what I wanted to achieve as the birthdays ticked by, and this wasn't totally it. I mean it was like 63% 'it,' but I go for 5* feels. 'It' had elements from my current role but I wanted to use them in new ways... I had to ponder this for a while; where and how did I want to use my talents? I wanted to 'give back', and to know my efforts were felt by others.
-A sensation of rebellion rose inside me every two weeks or so. I was put in situations over my capacity which meant being under pressure to do good work. I realised I felt anger under someone else's reign – I wasn't in control of my time, and it wasn't for MY* gain.
*Here, it might also be worth considering BYOB (being your own boss)...
Stage 3: But What Should I Be Doing Instead?
Great question. Here's some starting ammo:1. Read Mark Manson's Screw Finding Your Passion article...he reckons it's staring you right in the face.
2. Take a personality test to learn more about yourself. This could nudge you into a career that best exploits your personality. Also remember that PEOPLE CHANGE and it's OKAY if being a lawyer no longer serves you after 327 years of uni... The Longest Running Personality Study reveals that people change to an almost unrecognisable point from childhood to adulthood.
(I KNOW!?!)
NB. once you learn what you would rather being doing, a sophisticated handling of the situation and proactivity wouldn't go amiss... a.k.a avoid acting when your head's steaming like a kettle so you don't do something rash. Maintain calm, good work relationships, and talk to someone useful internally when you're steady. Then leave whenever is right for you, before or after you've secured something else. I also battled with the thought: 'Oh, I should stick it out to reach 18months because future employers might look down on me otherwise...' and to this I decided:Guys, we're in the Millennial age – we're all trying to figure it out, and often plodding along hoping for a fart of inspiration to wake us up like 'YOU SHOULD BE A DOCTOR/[enter role here]'. What we don't exploit enough is this new and more acceptable societal freedom to be fluid. It's the opportunistic era, so JUST DO IT.
Here's Bradley Cooper to explain how to, really well:
(^ Fab ad by Wieden + Kennedy London)
If that didn't work, here's Mark Manson again preaching the words we all wish we could live by; The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck:
3. You're socialising/networking and someone asks "So, Sean, what do you do?" Then you explain and during your response, you will feel a kinda way – TAKE NOTE OF THIS SENSATION! Is it guilt, pride, embarrassment, disgust? Maybe you list the negatives over the positives, or just reply "don't ask..."
This says a LOT. Let your response take you to a career where you'll feel better answering that question.
4. Write down a list of all the things you like about work possibly under the sections: COMPANY, ENVIRONMENT, CULTURE, PEERS, ROLE, OUTPUT...then seek these out elsewhere.
NB. Even if you LIKE (not love) work – maybe the people, a fair portion of your role, the socials etc., you may feel comfortable or think "this isn't a bad place to work for" – ask yourself if you want to 'sail'? If development and stimulation are important to you, get thinking about conversations internally or hopping off the wagon.
5. Any dreams with heavy metaphors in? 'Ava little research into their meaning.
6. Collate all your findings into a 'ME BIBLE 2017/18' and do this again in a year-ish to check-in. Changing is good because changing = growing and you get to experience more 'stuff' :D
Overall, it's important to remember that work is more of a life choice now. It's deeply connected to your lifestyle, the culture you associate with, the quality of people you learn from, your responsibility and contribution to society, and your future self.
