by Larkin G.
I recently got fired from my job. And, I’m ecstatic.
Confused?
How could something so inherently negative make me so blissful? Because I hated my job.
Shouldn't you be this excited at work?
Let me be clear. I did not do anything to get fired on purpose nor are the circumstances surrounding my past employment relevant.
Your job=Your Life
Think about what makes up any given 24 hours of your life (on a work day)
- Work (9 hours including lunch)
- Sleep (7 hours)
- Friends/family 4
- Activities outside of work 3
- Random (driving, etc) 1
The majority of your time in any given day is spent at your job. If you love your job, everything is sunshine and roses. But what if you hate your job? Or it’s unfulfilling? Or is just the wrong job for you? You are spending 8 hours of every day miserable. To be blunt….
your life sucks.
Where does the time go??
Spending over a quarter of your year (that adds up to over 2,000 hours!!) being miserable is bound to spill over into your personal life, no matter how good you are at compartmentalizing. So no matter how great your boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse is, how involved in the community you are, how dazzling your home is, how enticing your friends are, it’s hard to be truly happy if you hate your career. It simply takes up too much of your time.
Do we expect too much??
Now I’ve brought out the c word: career. Fifty years ago, no one talked about a career. They had a job, a place to be from 9-5. But we, millennials, demand much more than a job from our occupations. We not only want a career; we want a career that fulfills a greater purpose and helps define us as individuals.
Think about when you meet someone new. What questions do you automatically ask:
- A person’s name
- Where they work
After learning someone’s name, you automatically want to know what they do. Why? Because it is an intrinsic part of their identity. Because it defines them as a person. Think about how many times you’ve included it in your introduction.
Here’s mine: “Hi! I’m Larkin. I’m the Community Manager for Our Valley Events. What do you do?”
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To learn more from and connect with Larkin, follow her on Twitter – @LarkinGrant
You can also follow the rest of The Millennial Chat Team here.
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Now its your turn. I want to know about you.
- Do you want a career or a job?
- What do you expect from it?
- Do you think you can live a happy life if you hate your job?
Oh honey I am with you-I used to have a high-paying “career” but it made me unhappy so I left it for my dream career at the paper. And I love it!
That’s a great point Amy! Money isn’t everything. Just because you’re making a lot of money doesn’t guarantee your happiness either. I’m glad you got out and found your dream career. Personally, I’d rather be making less and be happy than making more and be miserable. Money really can’t buy the satisfaction of doing what you love every day.
As you know, I was in a similar predicament some time back. When the bad job goes away, so too does the misery that was your attitude toward everyone and everything you used to hold dear.
I can clearly remember my friend saying to me one day, “We like unemployed Abbie.” I hadn’t even realized the impact my job was having on those around me! They were miserable too! How awful is that?
Sometimes running away into the void is better than making yourself crazy. It’s a tough thing to do, which can lead to the unpleasant “firing” situation because you knew, your boss knew, but you just couldn’t cut the cord–after all, you simply have too many responsibilities.
But I’ve learned that life has a funny way of working itself out. It may take a while…sometimes a long while, but you will eventually end up right where you need to be.
Right on Abbie! Nothing is worth making yourself crazy or miserable. And you are SO right- misery at work spills into your personal life. I’d say that my friends can tell a difference in me now that I’ve gotten out of my old job. But as they say (and you) everything does happen for a reason. Thanks for sharing your story!
Oh girl, SO AGREED. There is not enough money in the world to make me EVER consider going back to the job I just left. And if I had been fired? I don’t know that I would have been sad…or mad even.
Diana, I can only speak to being fired from a job I disliked but it felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I wasn’t mad at all. It just wasn’t the job for me and it finally left me open to seek other opportunities.
I realized that it was not worth spending most of my time working a job that I did not like nor was proud of. It really hindered my social life and meeting new people because I was afraid of “so what do you do?” I decided at the start of 2011 to go after my dream job while still working my miserable job. I eventually got fired for taking off too many days for interviews.
I can’t say I was ecstatic because my steady income was now gone BUT it felt like a burden was lifted off my shoulders. I felt like I could go balls to the wall on chasing my dream job and not have to worry about making up excuses to go on interviews, hiding in the bathroom when employers called me, or having to turn down interviews.
I did eventually land my dream job but it wasn’t easy. I applied to about 400 jobs, went on 16 interviews, endless emails, and endless phone interviews. Going from miserable job, to fired, to months of unemployment, to landing my dream job was a very grueling but gratifying journey. I am really grateful for my new job and feel like I have the willpower and persistence to overcome any obstacle now
Mike, first CONGRATS!!! I’m thrilled you now have your dream job. And it sounds like you truly earned it! The search for a new job is not easy in the best of times.
You are absolutely right about losing your steady income. I’d love to meet anyone who looks forward to that!. That money was the one reason I remained at my job, because who QUITS A JOB?! I would also characterize my job search like you do. Now that there is nothing holding me back, I can look anywhere and everywhere without secrecy.
Thank you for sharing your story. I know there are many more people out there stuck like we were, feeling as if there’s no end in site. My hope is that stories like your’s and mine can give them hope.
A great post! RT @LarkinGrant: @suitedjobs LOVE it! Actually reminds me of my 1st @MillennialChat post: http://t.co/wZ4eHwGG