Hate your Job? Is it worth it? Questions for Reflection

Your job has an enormous effect on your entire life. That is why Occupational Wellness is one of the Seven Aspects of Wellness. If you don’t do what you love and love what you do, living a full and joyous life is going to be difficult. You spend a huge proportion of your time working. That means in the grand scheme of things: Your work is your accomplishment. Do you feel this to be true? Many of us don’t. We simply work the jobs we can for the pay we think will make us happy. Then, we wonder why we feel unfulfilled.

In order to align your heart and your hands, your creative potential and your dreams, you must first find out what nourishes your spirit and provides you with the life you really want. The right career can become the purpose you were born to fulfill, but first, you may have to decipher and decide what that purpose is. This might sound like an enormous task, but there are some simple guidelines that will point you in the right direction. We’ve put together five questions to connect your heart’s desires with the most practical, day-to-day work environment for you. Whether you’ve been in the working world for years or if you’re just getting started, your answers will reveal important insights. They’ll hold the keys to unlocking a world in which your job isn’t just a job, but a profession of purpose and satisfaction.

Does this job put me in a position to work with people who share my vision for life, or do I have to put up a front in order to interact with both my coworkers and bosses?

If you have a passion for helping people, making all the right moves to become a CEO probably won’t put you in a position to be your real self at work. If you have a burning desire to do something artistic, working with accountants will leave you feeling frustrated and empty. Conversely, if you’ve always dreamed of running a big company, working in a non-profit will most likely force you to put on an act around the people you work with. Being able to be yourself at work is key. If the profession you’ve chosen doesn’t fit in with your values and traits, you’ll have to keep parts of your personality under wraps in order to succeed. Eventually, this will wear on your emotional health and leave you feeling spent.

Even when you’ve chosen an occupation that allows you the freedom to express yourself authentically, make sure to look for a company with a compatible culture. Do you need an open schedule and the ability to work from home, or are you more productive with rigid deadlines and rules? You deserve a career that’s right for you. Being successful doesn’t mean you have to shape yourself to someone else’s standards in order to get a good job.

Does this job challenge me, require me to consistently learn new skills, stretch my imagination and sharpen my mind, or does it leave me feeling dull and intellectually understimulated?

Boredom. It’s possibly one of the worst feelings in the world. Even when you’ve found a career that fits your talents and utilizes your skills, boredom can still strike. Why? Because over time, you become efficient and effective at your tasks. You don’t have to think about them as much as you did in the beginning. Your job becomes routine, and this leads to the dreaded feeling that you’re in a boring, dead-end job. If, however, you can find a profession that uses your existing talents while challenging you to learn new skills, study new innovations and ideas, and discover something new every day, you’ll feel excited about the possibilities that each new day holds. Enhancing Intellectual Wellness increases confidence and happiness in the workplace.

You can also challenge yourself similarly in a job that you are, on the whole, quite satisfied with. Keeping it fresh doesn’t have to mean setting out on an entirely new career path. (But it can if you want it to!) If you’re an introverted writer, this could mean finding a copywriting job that will require you to talk to customers or coworkers regularly, sharpening those rarely-practiced people skills. Used to answering phones and working in sales? Perhaps a promotion will put you in a position to do some research in your field and write reports. Those in the field of education have constant opportunities to attend seminars, conferences and workshops on innovations in teaching methods and curricula. The opportunities for stimulating challenges are endless if you step (even just slightly!) outside your comfort zone.

Does this job help further my career and open doors to future jobs?

Can you imagine doing the same things every day for thirty years? Promotions aren’t just about the possibility of making more money. It’s nice to know that you’ll be given greater opportunities, more responsibilities and a variety of choices when it comes to your career. Dead-end jobs are simply that—a dead end.

Look for careers that allow you to stretch and grow so that you can have more options in the future. Most professions will ask that you start at the beginning, to demonstrate your work ethic and willingness to learn, but many will also give you ample opportunity to move forward, taking on more responsibilities and reaping greater benefits. Think about what you want in the future when choosing where to start. Do you eventually want to be able to work for yourself? Would you like to someday travel for work? Have ambitions. Consider the future opportunities that will likely be made available to you in a particular career path, and look for companies and positions that can open those doors for you.

Does this job mean that I must make serious compromises in my personal life (time missed with family and the like), and if so, do I think that these compromises are worthwhile?

It can’t be stressed enough that there’s more to life than what you do from nine to five. One of the hallmarks of the right career is that it affords you the ability to live the life you want to live outside of the office. If having plenty of personal time is a priority, then a job that demands long hours and take-home tasks is not for you. If you love what you do, though, you might find that sacrificing some of your personal life is worth the payoff. Consider your options, and be honest with yourself about what you really want out of a career. If the profession that you’ve chosen asks you to make sacrifices in your personal life, be sure that it’s worth it for you to compromise time for your family, friends and activities. If it’s not, look for a career that will make the life you want possible.

Do the daily tasks of this job speak to my soul and provide me with a sense of purpose?

You might love the philosophy behind your career of choice and feel that it supports your goals in a general sense, but if you don’t like the specifics of what you’re called on to do day in and day out, you’re going to feel frustrated and let down in the end. Do your daily tasks gel with your habits? Does your job description fit your preferences and natural talents? There will be times in any career when you’ll have to do things that might not fit your vision of a dream job. No job is all fun and games, all the time. But if the regular, day-to-day activities of your occupation are dragging you down and making you miserable, you’re not going to be very happy at work. Even if you love what your job stands for and accomplishes, if you can’t stand doing the actual work, it probably just isn’t the career for you.

Don’t know where to go from here?

In order to answer these five questions, you need to dig deep and answer some basic questions about yourself. To start, answer these questions to figure out what you want. Write the answers down.

What are my values and beliefs about my life’s purpose?
What are my values and beliefs about money?
What kind of activities do I enjoy?
What kind of schedule appeals to me?
How important is my personal life?
Where do I see myself in 10 years?
What would I ultimately like to accomplish through my career?
If I could do anything, regardless of money, time or opportunity, what would that be?
What would I do career-wise if I knew I could not fail?

Let us know what you are finding. We know we aren’t the only people to leave our jobs to pursue our dreams. Post your comments below if you need more guidance. Hitting your edge? Check out our article “All Work and No Play Makes You Go CR8Z.”