I think it’s fair to say that most people would prefer to do a myriad of other things rather than go to work everyday. Unfortunately, you need to earn a living to provide for food, shelter, clothing and other basic necessities required for you to survive.
There, however, are some fortunate people who love what they do for a living. Billionaire Warren Buffett continues to work into his 90s, while other notable politicians, celebrities and businesspeople remain active in the latter half of their lives. These people thrive on the action, intellectual challenges and seem to generally enjoy their jobs.
However, if you’re unhappy at work, it can be detrimental to your mental health and emotional well-being. Reporting to a dictatorial boss, remaining stuck without a promotion for years or not being paid what you’re worth will wear you down over time. If you find yourself in this position, you must figure out why and what to do about it, or risk being chronically dissatisfied and miserable.
What To Do Next
If you are unhappy in your work life, the first step you must take is to speak with your direct manager. It may be awkward and uncomfortable, but request a one-on-one meeting with your boss. To avoid a potential blow-up, talk in terms of possible solutions instead of offering a litany of complaints. Focus on the reasons why you deserve the additional compensation, promotion and bonus.
During this conversation, ensure that you are not in attack mode or pointing fingers for blame, or else it will not go well. Even if you are understandably upset, you must play the game and not add more flames to the fire.
To ensure a more meaningful interaction, take time to think deeply about the triggers that are making you unhappy. Could it be your micromanaging and toxic boss, an unpleasant corporate culture, being passed over for raises and promotions or your rude co-workers?
Once you’ve isolated the things that you dislike, try to figure out how to make changes to improve the situation.
If you harbor ideas of fixing the situation, now is the time to share what will make your work life better. For example, ask why you didn’t get a promotion. Inquire about what you need to do to get your career to the next level. If you feel underutilized, let your boss know. It will be helpful to bring to the table documents, data and information that reflects you’re doing a great job, but are being overlooked.
If you desire an internal lateral transfer to another division or feel the necessity of gaining additional knowledge, upskilling and training, ask your manager to help achieve these goals.
Don’t Be Afraid To Move Internally Or Leave
Be prepared, as you might not get the answers you had hoped for. If that’s the case, in the short term, try to make your daily experience at least tolerable. Focus on the aspects you can control. This includes setting boundaries with your boss and colleagues.
If nothing changes, after a while, look into opportunities to transfer to a different department or team. The switch could provide a fresh, new perspective and a better fit for your skills and interests.
If you’ve exhausted all options and your work situation is still causing unhappiness or is negatively impacting your mental health, you may need to start looking for opportunities elsewhere. Update your résumé and LinkedIn profile, seek out recruiters that specialize in your space and start looking for a new job.
Work-Life Balance And A Healthy Mindset
It’s important to cultivate a healthy work-life balance, especially when you’re unhappy at work. Prioritize activities and hobbies you enjoy outside of work to reduce burnout. Speak with friends, family or meet with a therapist to help you through this situation.
Look at the abundant life you have outside of the office, and express gratitude for all the great things you have going for yourself. Try not to dwell on the negativity. Focus on your successes, no matter how small, so you can find a measure of happiness.
You will need some time away to disconnect. Change up your routine by utilizing your paid time off to relax and reenergize. A change of scenery will do you well and help give you mental clarity to decide your next steps.
Find sports, clubs and hobbies that you can succeed in. This will help gain your confidence back. Slowly building up small, incremental successes will provide you with positive reinforcement and move you forward.
Prepare a game plan to figure out the next step in your career journey. Write an action plan on how you will achieve those goals, and then actually do it. The process of writing it down makes it real and will help hold you accountable by physically seeing it.
Do What Makes You Feel Better
By helping others in need, you can feel better about yourself and it will also put your own problems into perspective. Volunteer your time at a food kitchen for the homeless or a children’s hospital.
When you get despondent, you may resort to excessive drinking, eating, risk-taking and drugs to numb the pain. These things will only worsen your situation. Do the opposite by focusing on your physical, mental and emotional health. Engage in activities such as reading, watching intelligent and uplifting videos, listening to inspiring podcasts, going to the gym, doing yoga or just taking long walks in nature.
Think of the people that make you miserable and extricate yourself from those social settings. Stop watching vacuous shows on television or doom-scrolling and substitute those activities with a productive, new hobby.
Live in the moment, by stopping your critical monkey brain from telling you how bad you are, and appreciate the beauty that life has to offer.
Source: Forbes
