1315: What to Do When You Hate Your Job by Sarah Landrum with Dig to Fly on Work-Life Balance & Job Satisfaction

[00:00:00] This is Optimal Work Daily, Episode 1315. What to do when you hate your job?

[00:00:06] Buy Sarah Landrum with digtofly.com. And I'm your narrator Dan and I'm with you every single day

[00:00:12] reading from these great blogs that cover work, work-life balance, productivity, entrepreneurship

[00:00:17] and a whole lot more. So let's get right to today's post now as we start optimizing your life.

[00:00:27] What to do when you hate your job? Buy Sarah Landrum with digtofly.com.

[00:00:34] Hating your job isn't particularly uncommon. In fact, a Gallup study found that around 70% of

[00:00:39] workers find themselves disengaged from their job. Doing the same things day after day while

[00:00:45] feeling you're hardly making a difference in the world can certainly contribute to a feeling

[00:00:50] of disengagement in the workplace. I was once that disengaged employee who hated my job.

[00:00:55] I dreaded getting up in the morning and every minute spent at work felt like the clock was ticking

[00:01:00] by way too slowly until I could finally clock out and head home. Sometimes I'd hide in the

[00:01:06] bathroom for a few minutes just to get away from my desk. I was miserable. Lucky for me,

[00:01:12] I wasn't trapped. That dreadful job was just for the summer and I was lucky enough to

[00:01:17] go back to school at the end of the season. Unfortunately, many of those who don't

[00:01:21] enjoy their job can't simply get up and leave. Many factors, from a steady paycheck to a feeling

[00:01:26] of security, make it nonsensical for workers to leave, at least in the present. So what can

[00:01:32] you do when you hate your job but can't leave? 1. Pursue passions on the side

[00:01:38] When I worked that sales job, it was becoming quickly apparent that it wasn't the job for me.

[00:01:43] I had no clue what to do at the time as I needed to pay rent,

[00:01:46] so I started doing something I enjoyed in my spare time. Writing. I had always enjoyed writing

[00:01:51] and soon realized there were places online that paid for quality work. I began working for a

[00:01:56] copywriting business in my spare time. Eventually, when the time was right to leave my sales job,

[00:02:01] I had already built experience and connections within an industry that made me happier and

[00:02:06] more properly utilized my strengths thanks to pursuing my passion on the side while working

[00:02:10] days. Whether you have an hour or several of free time after work, it's recommended to keep your

[00:02:16] passions intact while working at a job you hate. It could be something artistic like writing or

[00:02:21] graphic design, or maybe it's an idea like starting your own PR company or inventing.

[00:02:27] Regardless, a dull job shouldn't keep you from pursuing your passions and things you're good

[00:02:31] at. 2. Use your job to identify weaknesses

[00:02:36] Your job right now may be boring but you can still use it to your advantage as a device

[00:02:40] to identify which things you wouldn't possibly want to do at your next job. For example, I found

[00:02:46] the constant phone calls in sales to be annoying, which helped me narrow down my future options and

[00:02:51] resulted in deciding on something like writing where phone calls aren't nearly as non-stop.

[00:02:56] While working at your current job, write down a list of things about it you don't enjoy

[00:03:01] along with things you do enjoy, if any. This will help you discover the best industry

[00:03:05] for you when the time is right to leave. Making a list with two columns, too much and not enough,

[00:03:11] should make your next career move a lot clearer when the time is right.

[00:03:16] 3. Identify lifelong goals It's natural for humans to live day by day.

[00:03:22] It's difficult to brainstorm about where you want to be in 20 years when rent is due and

[00:03:27] you're worrying about affording groceries. Still, when your job isn't the right fit,

[00:03:31] it's a great idea to keep in mind your lifelong goals so as to better associate yourself with

[00:03:36] businesses that share similar values. I may not have worked my sales job for long,

[00:03:41] but it was long enough to know that I needed more to strive for. Now that I've had that

[00:03:45] experience, I can appreciate my current position all the more. Still, some days are harder

[00:03:50] to get through. That's where goals come in. On the days you don't feel like working or

[00:03:55] feel as though you have nothing to work for, having a goal can be like having a light at

[00:04:00] the end of the tunnel. It's your out, your way to a better job, to happiness.

[00:04:06] Take learning as a goal, for example. Since millennials are the most educated generation

[00:04:10] in history, many businesses are beginning to adopt lifelong learning values, such as

[00:04:15] opportunities for continued education and training. If this is important to you,

[00:04:19] keep it in mind as you plot your next move. Make it a lifelong goal to work for a company

[00:04:24] that shares that value. The second part to that goal is to work towards it in the short

[00:04:29] run too. If you lack the experience or training to make the move to a job you want,

[00:04:34] make it a goal to start learning anything and everything you can to get to where you want to be.

[00:04:39] I can make it a goal to read at least two books a month that can help me grow,

[00:04:43] both as an individual and as a professional. You'll develop the skills you need to make

[00:04:48] the move, and that dream company of yours, the one that values learning,

[00:04:52] will take this as a sign that you're a good fit. Now you're not stuck anymore.

[00:04:57] Your current job is also useful in this sense, since you can look at your current employer's

[00:05:02] general philosophy and workplace and identify areas you don't enjoy, such as an overemphasis

[00:05:08] on profits over community or a lack of communication from managers. Add these aspects

[00:05:13] to either the too much or not enough columns as well. And four, consider staying but with

[00:05:21] adjustments. If, for whatever reason, you absolutely cannot leave your job in the near

[00:05:26] future, it may be better to hunker down and try to maximize your situation there the best you can.

[00:05:32] For example, if your job leaves you feeling unstimulated, speak with your employer about

[00:05:37] handling greater responsibilities. Not only will it make time go by quicker,

[00:05:41] but the more substantial responsibilities are a good look that can result in a

[00:05:45] pay raise down the line. Also ask about your current employer's educational benefits or

[00:05:50] volunteer opportunities, as both provide a way to hone your talents while working at a job that

[00:05:55] does not properly use them. This is also a good strategy when you love the company but hate your

[00:06:01] job. Most bosses want to retain employees and are open to horizontal movements within the company.

[00:06:07] If you're feeling unsatisfied but aren't interested in leaving behind the company or

[00:06:11] the benefits, switching to a new position within the company can sometimes be the answer.

[00:06:16] While being at a boring job is less than desirable, these tips can either help you

[00:06:21] tolerate your current situation or move on to a new one when the time is right.

[00:06:25] Whatever you do, remember that you're never stuck. You just listened to the post titled

[00:06:35] What To Do When You Hate Your Job by Sarah Landrum with digtofly.com.

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[00:07:27] So just go to indeed.com.startup right now and support our show by saying you heard about

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[00:07:39] And of course we want to thank Sarah for today's post but also Carl who runs digtofly. Carl's mission

[00:07:47] is to help entrepreneurs understand their struggles and turn them into stepping stones.

[00:07:52] In 2010 he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and then was laid off from his job

[00:07:57] less than a year later. And while those were difficult situations of course,

[00:08:01] today he calls them blessings in disguise because since then he stopped doing work

[00:08:05] that doesn't fit with his passions and instead now focuses on only the things he truly cares about.

[00:08:11] Carl is the author of the book Bring Gratitude and has a lot to offer on his site which again

[00:08:16] is digtofly.com. I do have that linked for you in this episode's description. And if you're

[00:08:22] curious and haven't heard from Carl before, digtofly means dig deep to fly high. There's

[00:08:28] also a podcast you can find the Dig to Fly podcast wherever you're getting your audio.

[00:08:33] But that is going to do it for today here on Optimal Work Daily. Really hope you enjoyed

[00:08:37] this post and that you'll be back again with me tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.