Whether you’re working for yourself or working for someone else, “I don’t like my job” is a hard thing to admit. You’ve been emotionally and energetically invested in moving forward in it, and if it’s your own business… you’re also financially invested.
You feel lost with what to do next.
Would quitting feel like failure?
Would it disappoint someone?
Could I be missing out on a good opportunity that I’m too stubborn to see?
Will I ever be able to make money at something that I actually enjoy instead?
I don’t like my job, but I feel like I need to see it through somehow.
There’s something strangely enticing to people about a smiling face and an empathetic person that invites them to pour out their woes. I happen to be one of these empathetic people.
People have been coming to me with stories of exes who are downright cruel, dysfunctional family, and annoying coworkers for as long as I can remember. Many might curse their gift of being an easy shoulder to cry on, and I’ll admit it – when I have enough of my own negativity to deal with, I have.
I’m grateful for it, even still, because everything I learn from them and from what I read can all be used to help you, too. One problem I’ve had confessed to me more than you’d ever believe is, “I don’t like my job.”
It’s a problem that plagues so many of us. Often, we choose jobs that seem “safe”, with a bright financial future ahead – but even those are not promised forever. Many people choose jobs that their parents did, because it’s both familiar and seems like it would do our parents proud.
But none of the reasons people keep jobs they hate ever take their long-term fulfillment into consideration.
Have you arrived to a point where you realize you could never love what you do? You may be considering quitting. If this is where you are right now, I highly suggest giving this a read instead: Afraid to Change Careers. I’ll discuss how to decide whether you should take the leap.
If you still want to see this same career or business path through, keep reading.
I don’t like my job because there’s too much else I have to do for it that I don’t enjoy.
Are you doing what you “should do”, or what you’d actually like to do? Is it the “smart thing” to do by society’s standards, by the standards of someone more successful than you, or yours?
It’s easy to completely lose sight of what drew you to create this business or choose this career in the first place… if you feel like you rarely get to do the part that you actually DO love!
Am I stuck doing nothing but “should-dos” according to someone else, or do I get to have any joy in what I do? This question has been on my mind from the very beginning of my journey. Checking in with myself often is how I’ve been able to keep the fire alive for my business. If you do what you want and do it WELL, so much just falls into place.
If there are “must-do’s” in your business that you hate, well… Then it’s time to get resourceful.
There will always be some of these. For my own business, it’s social media that I can’t stand to do. In a perfect world, I’d go weeks without logging into Facebook or Twitter. That’s time I could be spending outside hiking with my girls, recording fun videos, or writing more.
Finally, I got fed up enough to do something about it. Being angry has its place, because getting fed up enough is always the first step.
I invested in PostPlanner, which I spent every weekend loading up with my own perfectly personable and fun statuses and questions WAAAY ahead of time. I disbanded my Facebook group, because the joy I got out of it didn’t outweigh how much work it was to maintain.
After all of that, I barely touch social media… and my name still gets out there. Life is less complicated now. I get to spend more time doing what I started this business for: helping people!
Do you have tasks in your business or career that you hate? That’s where you figure out how you can do one or several of these…
- Make it faster or more efficient.
Get some tools! Anything that’s ever needed to be done that a person could possibly hate probably has a tool to make it easier. Look for it. Don’t just buy it as a business expense. Invest in your joy and sanity. You’re only the best at what you do if you love it. The quality you put out, your income, and the customers you do or don’t bring to you will reflect that. You’re worth it!
- Re-examine your business model.
In the beginning, you wanted to have fun. You wanted this “entrepreneur lifestyle” everyone keeps talking about. You wanted freedom. Now, you have the business you asked for, and you’re beginning to wonder if the grass really wasn’t greener here after all.I’ve been here many times. It’s happened to me as recently as with Fearless Pursuits. From my own experience, I can tell you that you need to take a hard look at how you’ve created your business to operate.Did you create a business, or did you create a “job” instead? Are you working in the business more than it’s working for you? Are you doing things that you think you should do because someone else told you that it was do or die?Instead of doing your homework to get better at how those people are doing it, seek out people who succeeded without it. Start reading about how to think and work outside the box! - Make it fun to do.
Ask yourself this: What would it take for you to wear a smile while you do it? Write it all down. Can you listen to a book or music on your way to work, or even while you work? Do you need to ask for perfect silence or more support from your family?Communicate clearly to them that it would be showing love to you if they would give you what you need. If they truly care about you and want to have a place in your journey, they’ll understand. - Get some help with doing it.
As much as we’d like to do everything ourselves, there’s plenty of research to prove that multitasking is not only ineffective… it’s impossible. Even if you aren’t trying to multitask your way through the day, doing everything on your own is too stressful to be sustainable.Make peace with asking for help when you need it. Write down all of the “must-dos” you don’t like, and decipher which ones you can outsource. On a budget? Prioritize them in order of how much time each sucks out of your day, and start with just one.
Get those creative juices flowing! Your life won’t wait for you.
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