Comments on: A job does not give life meaning

By: Rashmi

Rashmi — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 01:34:03 +0000

Keep the faith Johnny. It is better to realize late than never. Time vs. money/status is a trade-off, but now that you seem to have a good education and job, you can choose to downshift or downsize (there are many amazon books on this – Goal-free living is one) and work fewer hours perhaps as a freelancer or consultant….in any case, you cannot make up for the past 10 years of your life, but think of it as inevitable….all of that had to happen for you to come to this turning point in your life…now you can prevent further damage and take control of your life and live the way you want to. I know, it is nerve-wracking, I'm going through this dilemma myself and there are no easy answers, but when you look within your heart, the answer seems crystal clear doesn't it? We just have to trust that the universe will find a way for our or we will find our way in the big backyard we call the universe.
You could even communicate this with your ex and she might be sympathetic to your earlier dilemmas. If not, that's ok too. Maybe it is for the best, the universe might have a different plan for you. Trust it and enjoy the journey, not just the destination.

By: Johnny

Johnny — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 20:03:32 +0000

I let my job consume me. Status meetings every Monday morning 8am. My kiss ass coworker makes sure to be a half hour earlier than everyone and never waits to start the meeting.

I neglected having fun with my girlfriend on the weekends or spare time for my job.

My father passed away in July 2008. I turned 30 in Nov 2008. I was not sure about my girlfriend and our relationship. She left me four days after my birthday. Started lying to me about trips she was taking with her pregnant friend to go visit her husband in Ft. Benning, GA. I freaked out. Now we don't speak.

Now I resent my job. I resent my work life. My coworkers. My boss with absurd ever changing feature requests and get Venture Capital quick schemes.

I've been on a string of bad dates. Some really nice cool creative smart girls, then a few dumb bimbos. Nothing has panned out. I'm drinking, smoking, etc more than I used to.

I still have dreams about my father where he is alive. My girlfriend also. I don't know what to do and very depressed when I go visit my 27 year old brother (who has never had a real job) at the skatepark on my lunch break wishing I could be skating, playing music doing something like that instead. These people (a lot of hipsters and dirts around here) seem a LOT happier.

Not sure what to do. Sometimes I feel like hitting eject, but then again I just want to complete the project I was hired to do, but its impossible with ever chaning features when they really need to replace a 10 year old access database application.

Lost,

Johnny

By: Linda

Linda — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 12:13:52 +0000

Thanks for a good post, really interesting and thought-provoking.

I love my job, probably because it's as you say – the right amounts of interesting and challenging, as well as the right amount of time every day. I teach English as a second language, and although I sometimes feel like pulling my hair out (that's the challenging part), there's a lot of job satisfaction.

I'm also on short contracts, which I find helps a lot too – if a job is terrible, I know exactly how long I'm there for, and if it's wonderful, I appreciate it for the short time I get it.

By: Annie

Annie — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 03:11:27 +0000

Thank you for this post Penelope. Being fresh out of college and getting into what I had envisioned was my "dream job," has left me overwhelmed and unfulfilled. I think you hit it right on the head why it's been unfulfilling – it's not my job but life.

By: links for 2009-02-05 | ][ stefano maffulli

links for 2009-02-05 | ][ stefano maffulli — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 16:05:58 +0000

[...] A job does not give life meaning | Brazen Careerist by Penelope Trunk People would be a lot happier with the job they had if they were happier with themselves outside of their job. (tags: carriera job career hbr work) No TweetBacks yet. (Be the first to Tweet this post) [...]

By: sandra

sandra — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 20:32:15 +0000

very interesting post. thank you! i need that new perspective because i've been feeling unfufilled at my jobs for a very long time. thus the reason i keep job hopping. and the reason i keep job hopping is because i keep ending up at a badly matched company.

i've recently been on that lovely self-discovery journey (that's how i found your post). and what you write resonates because it's soo true in that we need to know who we are before we know exactly what company is the best match for us … just like a mate. i found my relationship mate. with a little more self excavation, i think… no, i CAN find my vocation mate. why is it harder to find the perfect job than it is to find the perfect husband? ;p

By: andree

andree — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 14:44:15 +0000

After reading your article I am realizing that I do need more activities to occupy my free time. I sure do have the time to get involved, but I keep thinking I need to make more money, so what do I do?

By: J.R.

J.R. — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 06:27:27 +0000

Work/Career Only is not life. I have seen too many men and women whose only life focus seemed to be "The Job". It seems to me that within six months of retirement those folks are on their death beds. For those of less than retirement age, six months or so after "The Job" is a life cusp that can either go on to a new an better life, OR
Marital/relationship issues, financial trouble, addictive behaviors or other crash landings.

Stop and smell the roses, while you still have the job. Get some outside interests, hobbies and friends. Don't be so consumed by doing "The Job" to the exclusion of all else. If you do so, you will find that it consumes you, and you become nothing but a hollow shell of a person.