This Job Sucks!

Most of my counseling clients and people I talk to in general these days have basically, in one way or another, stated that they more or less dislike the job they are currently doing.

This likely does not come as a surprise and many people simply grit their teeth and get through each day while yearning for the promise of temporary reprieve when Friday afternoon finally comes around again.

I won't belabor the problem that this creates in the daily lives of people, their families, and humanity as a whole. Being solution-oriented is the name of the game and solutions there be; it may simply require some un-learning and a new way of looking at ourselves and at life.

The most obvious problem we face is that we feel we have to "get a job." There is a list of finite jobs "out there" and an even smaller number of jobs for which we are presently qualified.

From day one, we are taught to make ourselves ready for the job world and ensure we can adapt to the constantly increasing demands of the workforce—indeed our very survival may depend on our doing so.

My writing this article is like an alarm bell that hopefully will awaken people to the possibility that there may be an alternative to constantly compromising our true passions and personal integrity in order to fit into sub-par work situations.

When I work with clients, I often simply ask, "What do you truly want to be doing with your life?" We strip away the complications and get right to the heart of the matter.

For example, my wife has always known she wants to be an artist. She works part-time at a college library and has spent a good amount of time zoning out on Netflix and other things in her downtime.

Lately she has realized that if she wants to be free of the job that is holding her back, she has to create the career she has always desired.

She is now diligently drawing, painting, and making videos of her art as well as starting a store on Etsy.

This is really all that is needed. We realize the kind of life we want and then make daily practical steps in the time that is available to us. The vicious cycle many of us find ourselves in is basically working in a sub-optimal job and then using much of our time and money to compensate for how painful and unfulfilling the job is.

Wise and hilarious words. RIP George Carlin.

The bottom line is we have to use the hatred and disdain we have for our current jobs to motivate us to take the daily steps towards creating what we truly desire rather than falling into a victim mentality.

Even if we only have an hour of free time every evening we can put that to good use in terms of contemplating, planning, and implementing the type of life we imagine when we daydream at our current place of work.

A good mental exercise I use with people is asking them what they want to do once they are retired. What do you look forward to doing every weekend or vacation? What are your genuine passions and interests that working prevents you from enjoying more often?

The most obvious problem in this whole line of thinking is that it is difficult to monetize certain things, at least at first. A steady job with a reliable paycheck has been the mainstay of our lives for generations.

That is why I emphasize that we are in a transitional period. We can use the job we'd rather be free of as a stepping stone to get us to the next level. We also live in an age where it is technically possible to make a living doing just about anything and it has never been easier to put ourselves out there in the marketplace of new ideas.

My own journey involved realizing that I want to help people in a deep, lasting way that goes beyond mainstream rhetoric and easy answers. I know all too well the pain of slaving away at something that feels as though it is wearing away at my very soul.

I always had a gift of being able to listen to people very closely and really connect with the essence of what they were saying. I was always listening to bosses and co-workers tell me about things they were dealing with and sort of acted as an informal counselor in stressful work environments.

When I entered the field of social work and counseling, I realized that the bureaucratic and needlessly complicated mainstream system was actually hindering the process of truly helping real people overcome real suffering.

My online counseling business Seeds Of Love was created out of my desire to connect with people directly and in my own unique way. I want to tell people that it is indeed possible to do what we truly love and be able to make a good living while doing it.

I'd be happy to speak to you about your own path and process anytime. It is primarily through self love that we will be inspired to create a better life for ourselves, one step at a time.