I Hate My Job! – But I’m Not Going Anywhere

I talk to a lot of people about their jobs and one of the most common phrases I hear is ‘I hate my job’. That statement in and of itself doesn’t surprise me. Almost any job satisfaction survey you look at will show that people are not satisfied with their jobs. So the fact that people complain about their jobs and even say they hate their jobs is not a surprise. What is almost astonishing, is how many people, although they say they hate their jobs, aren’t planning on going anywhere. They plan on staying right where they are.

So why are people afraid to leave their jobs even though they hate them. Why are we so willing to put up with all the”stuff” that goes along with an unfulfilling and unsatisfying career? Although there are many reasons for the actions that people do or don’t take, I think there are three primary reasons why people don’t move to a job they love from a job that they hate.

People are scared: Many people never explore the opportunities that are around them because they are scared. They are either scared no one will hire them or they are scared that they may not be able to find something else which would ultimately represent failure or they are just scared to admit that they have gotten themselves into a career or job that they don’t like. When people are afraid, many times they will freeze. think about what you do if you hear noise in the middle of the night. You freeze. You are quiet and still and you listen. when people are in jobs that they hate, many times they will freeze as well leaving them hating their jobs day and day out.

People don’t believe there is anything else: A lot of people that are in jobs that they hate simply don’t believe that there is anything better. Sometimes this is a mentality that is instilled in them as they have grown up: work is something you do to put food on the table, nothing more. That is truly unfortunate because the truth is that we all have the ability to be successful in our work. We just have to spend a little time figuring out those skills and abilities and then focusing our work around them. There is no reason to stay in a job that you hate.

False sense of security: Many people believe that because they have worked for the same company for a long time that there is some security in staying there. While this may be true with some smaller companies, you don’t have to look any further than the American automakers to see the reality of security in your job. People have been losing their jobs even though they have worked for that same company for twenty or more years. Security only exists when we take control of our worklife and begin to work to our strengths. We cannot expect companies to keep pulling us along in our careers. We have to stop and tale control.

Do you hate your job? Have you stopped to think about why you are still there? I encourage you to do that. Once you have, I hope you will sit down and map out plan to get into a career that is more fulfilling and meaningful; a job that you don’t hate.