Do you really hate your job?
It’s nearly the end of another week and you’re sat at your desk wondering what plans you have for the weekend, why is the week going so slowly and you are truly hating your job!
Or at least that’s how it feels at that moment in time. Maybe it is time for a coffee, a quick break from your screen or to take a stroll around the office. After all we can’t be pinned to our desks ALL day and it isn’t very productive anyway.
Is it the first time you have had this feeling? Have you said it out loud to others? Maybe it’s just a bad day and Monday will be better … or maybe not! Maybe you really do hate your job!
Why do you hate your job?
So what is it about your job that you hate? The chances are there are multiple factors as to why you hate your job and complain about it. There will be one dominating factor of course but when you feel down, all the little things mount up. Here are a few of the most common complaints.
The Boss!
We have all heard it said that people don’t quit jobs, they quit bosses! So maybe it is the boss, the micro-management the passive aggressive niggles that really grate. You have done this job for years now and know what you are doing. You should be the boss! Until you are the boss, you will never be happy in that role.
It’s what you trained for!
You trained for this role with years at university, hours of work, exams and certifications followed by internal reviews and endless hours of CPD. It would be criminal to think of doing anything else never mind quitting! But, it’s not making you happy and your passions have changed and developed. What would your friends think? The loop of guilt associated with not wanting to work in your initial profession can be overwhelming and make you hate what you do even more.
Financial
Working all the hours you possibly have available while still trying to manage a private / family life and worrying if you can afford to do all the things you have on that list or vision board? You earn just above the national average of £36k (Forbes Advisor) live in a good neighbourhood and have a nice house but it’s not enough! Tax, commuting, lunches (yes you have to eat!) the odd drink after work and family time soon see that monthly salary dwindle. You look at other jobs and the package aren’t as good or it’s further away meaning longer hours away from the kids. Stuck! Stuck in a job you hate because financially it seems the right thing to do.
It’s not the same since COVID
Pre-Covid, a trip to the office or workplace was common place and the daily commute was all part of working. However, that all changed with lockdown and suddenly working from home or hybrid working was the norm. This is also set to increase with younger and more agile firms hoping to attract great employees. However, the freedom of working from home, not necessarily being “chained” to a desk has given people a glimpse into what might be if they set up shop themselves! Stuck at your desk, once again thinking about the possibility of doing something for yourself, then the boss walks in!
What is the answer?
It is important to know that there is always an alternative in any situation. We are very much in control of the actions we take. Change is not always easy and it doesn’t actually have to be huge and life altering to make you happy and refresh how you feel. You are however, in control of it and only you can make that change.
Here are the three options that I believe you have and are in control of
- Do nothing!
- Stay doing what you do and keep complaining about it. This is the easiest by far, and in truth, the option that the vast majority will take. It’s comfortable, it’s easy and it’s what you know. Afterall, you don’t hate it that much!
- Change your outlook on the current situation!
- Once you realise that you hate your job you can start to change some of those reasons. Save a little more money, work stricter hours, after all nothing is really that much of an emergency that it can’t wait until the morning! Once you realise that you don’t hate your job as much as you think you do, you will feel happier and then who knows what may happen. Here’s to being the boss!
- Stop what you are doing and make the move!
- This is the hardest and scariest option that only a few will ever make, but know that it IS possible. Of course there is a range of options here, from quitting your job to doing something similar, maybe retraining, possibly even starting your own business or growing that side hustle you’ve been working on in the background. You just have to make that decision and leap…
What’s Next?
Once you have made your decision that things need to change, the rest is down to you and the first thing to do is to actually take action and commit to making the change.
If the action is changing jobs, start by writing a list of the pros and cons, make sure you are making the correct decision. Start imagining your life in your new role. Will you have less steady income, but more freedom. If so how will you manage with reduced income? What sacrifices will you need to make?
If after this you still feel starting afresh is for you, then you’re probably making the right move and the days of hating your job may well be behind you. Even if it doesn’t work out, you’ve taken action and doing something is always better than doing nothing!
About The Author
