Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion Off Topic work getting you down

what do you do when work's getting you down, other than knock back a couple?

I remind myself that there are many unemployed people who would love to have my job; and that, as much as I may not enjoy work at that moment, I am lucky to have it.

If that doesn't help, I will talk with a good friend whom I know will commiserate with me.

Joy,
Lynn

you bring up a valid point, why am I moaning about work when there are plenty who have lost jobs or cant find one, especially with all the problems in Britain, thank you

You're very welcome.

Having a child with multiple special needs has taught me to seek out the silver lining in all situations. I've found that, for me at least, sometimes a change in perspective is a real sanity saver.

My sign off of "Joy" is by no means casually chosen. It is both a wish of joy to others and a reminder to myself of Philippians chapter 4.

Joy,
Lynn

I have a picture of a woman holding a large garbage bag under the upraised tail of an elephant in a zoo. The elephant is busy filling up the bag.

I look at that and remind myself that my job isn't all that bad.

LoL @ Terry XD

Heh I knock back a couple more, turn up the music, and dance it out. :p

Ok, maybe I look at the bigger picture, too. Ultimately I'm not going to love work every single week. You can only teach people about "that blue E icon on your desktop" so many times without wanting to walk into traffic.

But I have health insurance, which would have been almost impossible for me to come by otherwise. I've been getting involved in a couple of small activities after work, so that always gives me something to look forward to if work gets in the crapper. And I like my job enough to know I will eventually get to have a week when good things do happen, like my clients figure out how to check their email, or the office b**ching gets to a minimum.

Hopefully there's some good to balance out the bad?

Peace,
JD

Remember that I'm planning to retire in three years, imagine myself relaxing while they're all hard at work once that happens, and grin and bear it.

I've been retired for 10 years now! It's great! you can spend all day here if you want.

Artemis

Get a dart board. Put whatever is bothering you on a piece of paper and put it up on the dart board. Then throw darts to your heart's content.

ML (who has been playing with the idea of getting one of those big punching bags and a pair of gloves )

Do not buy into the "I'm just lucky to still have a job" crap. It has been the corporate mantra for a decade and has allowed company owners to abuse their employees without consequences. They just trot out the old "You're just lucky to still have a job" and you sulk off and take what ever crap they're feeding you.

It's true that the poor economic policies of companies and the government over the last decade has put us in a tough situation, and unemployment is a tragic consequence. But there will always be unemployment (though it has been higher than normal for a while now) and that is no reason to undervalue yourself.

Many of us may be trapped in our job situations and don't feel we have a lot of options at the present time, but that's no reason to feel fortunate that your employer can exploit you because of it.

I don't hate my present job, but I certainly don't look forward to going in each day either. I've been with them for nearly ten years and in all that time the company has made a lot of changes over the years. I understand many of them were necessary from a business stand point, but I find it interesting that not one change, in all that time, has made my job better or easier.

I have a friend who is only 54 and he has put in for his retirement at the end of the year. He's not doing it because he has all sorts of money to fall back on, he doesn't. But in his words, If he doesn't retire soon he's convinced that the job will kill him. It has already impacted his health significantly and he knows that he can't go on the same way.

Never be fooled into thinking that your company cares one whit about you as a person. You are just a number in the overall game to them and the minute they feel they can do without you... they will. There is no such thing as loyalty in business.

Tank (who has had many years to cultivate his bright, positive attitude)

First of all, I agree with Tank. If you feel like this isn't the place for you, start looking for a better situation now. In my experience, it's easier to get a job when you still have one.

Trying to think about how lucky I was to be employed just didn't work for me. Yes, I made more money than the majority of the world's population, but knowing that didn't magically make my boss more understanding, lighten the work-load or give my corporate, drone-type job any sort of higher meaning. Believe it or not, when my last contract ended and I couldn't find work, I actually started feeling happier (although stressed in different ways).

Not that I'm recommending unemployment as a solution, nor do I want to downplay the hardships that many face due to unemployment. On the contrary, as one who was unemployed (first time in 15 years) for almost a year, I have a new and deeper compassion for people that struggle financially than I ever did before. However, I just don't believe that one needs to chain themselves to a bad work situation like I once did.

Having endured years in a job that didn't put me in a "happy place", I found a few things that helped me (other than drinking):

If your company allows a 10-15 minute coffee/smoke break in the morning, get out and take a quick walk in the morning light. You'll be amazed at how much more energetic you'll feel.

Do something that you love on your lunch break. During one of my most difficult times, I swam laps at a nearby pool or roller-bladed (is that a word?) around the parking lot during lunchtime. It not only helped me get in shape, but broke my work day into smaller, easier to handle chunks and gave me something I could look forward to other than the dismal office environment.

I also went back to school part-time (nights and weekends). It was hard fitting it into an already busy schedule, but it allowed me to explore a new career without leaving the security of the job I had.

Last, but not least, I read and wrote fanfiction. A good WaFFy story can do wonders as a pick-me-up.

Good luck, Sammie. I hope things get better for you.

I realize from the responses to my earlier posts that I hadn't made my thoughts completely clear. I am definitely not advocating remaining in a job one hates when other options are feasible. I have changed jobs (indeed, I went back to grad school) for that very reason.

My posts were predicated on the assumption that, for whatever reason, such a job change was either infeasible or undesirable at the moment. I had assumed that if a job change were a reasonable possibility, Sammie would simply have started pounding the pavement, rather than creating this thread.

Joy,
Lynn

@MLT, a punch bag might not be a bad idea considering how many times ive punched a wall which i am slightly embarrassed to admit, and a job change isnt the way i want to go considering a lot of the time I am happy with my job, thanks to all those who responded , ]
sammie x

I took up boxing.

No, seriously. I never again felt the overwhelming desire to punch a client because I spent all Saturday morning (and an hour on Tuesday and Thursday mornings) beating the tar out of a giant bag of sand. Trust me, this was saying a lot. I used to work for bankers

And when that wasn't enough, I changed jobs. I went into the corporate world after law school as part of a plan and I stuck to it. I worked for a while, paid off all of my debt, saved some money and got myself into a position where I was able to take a job I loved at about a third the pay without worrying about money. I don't say this to gloat, but to encourage those who hate their jobs to devise a plan.

Look for ways to develop the skills you will need to do what you want. Especially now. In a tough market, you can't just dive in without checking the water level. Make a plan. That might mean going back to school or taking seminar or continuing education courses in your field. It might mean talking to people who have the sort of job you really want to do to see how they got there. And if what you really want to do involves financial risk, like taking a pay cut to work for a non-profit or starting your own company, it means creating a financial plan, devising contingencies, and really mapping out what you need to do to be successful in your new field.

I can't guarantee you'll be successful, but if you don't come up with alternatives to staying in a job you hate, you're just going to find yourself stuck with that job you hate (or, in this economy, worse).

Rac (who as you probably can guess, is a big planner)