Work a Job You Hate

There’s a famous quote that says “choose a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life” and while that might very well be true, I believe that sometimes there’s merit to working a job you hate; at least for a while!

The allure of following our dreams, of waking up each morning with a spring in our step as we make our way to not our job, but our calling, is something we all yearn for. But in reality most of us will have to work jobs we hate at least once in our lives. And while these jobs are mundane and draining to our creativity there are also lessons to be had when we work merely to pay the rent.

When we spend most of our lives at work and that work is not enjoyable it can be easy to become negative. Focusing only on the pits of our day and ignoring the peaks. No matter how bad you think your job may be, I urge you to think about the positives. Perhaps it won’t always be obvious but seek to find just one thing about your job, be it the location, the people, or an element of the role that you actually like. Every time something good happens make a mental note. Likewise, collate a list of the elements you do not like so much, this list will serve as a point of reference when helping you decide what you want out of a future role. A list of pros and cons will also help aid rational instead of emotional decisions. And remember that nothing worth having ever came easy. Yes, this isn’t your dream job but every step you make in your career is the journey towards something better. Try with all you have not to quit because throwing the towel in is just too easy, sticking at something even when things aren’t going your way, now that’s hard and a quality best learned early on.

Before I finally held down a job I actually liked, I worked retail, telesales and stacked shelves on the twilight shift at a supermarket, and while I categorically hated them all, looking back each one taught me something. So, if you’re stuck at work, reading this wishing you were somewhere else, doing anything else, remember you’re not the only one and try to make the most of the opportunity this so called dead end job is giving you.