Minimising negativity towards work

Mark Twain once said “Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life”.

Wow…. isn’t that awesome?

But wait, I don’t quite love my job. How am I going to enjoy work?

I am sure this is a problem that many of us in the rat race face.

To be honest, with the exception of a handful (I know someone who is working at Kidzania and she absolutely adores her job!), most individuals I know hate their job. Ok, maybe hate is too strong a word to describe. Perhaps I should rephrase it to say that many would not hesitate to tender their resignation if not for the fact that there’s the mortgage to pay, and children’s education to consider.

Tsk tsk… it seems like we are stuck in a situation aren’t we?

And it sucks.

And it does. I do not disagree with that.

I do not particularly love my job.

But at the same time, I do not hate it. If I were to describe it, I am neutral, and perhaps to put it in perspective, I do not enjoy some parts of the job as much as I hope I would.

Well then, there’s not much we can do about it right? I mean after all, it’s not like we are the boss, and we get to select the work. In fact, I was thinking about it, perhaps even for the entrepreneurs, there are some parts of the load that they hate to deal it, but they still have to manage it somehow.

Negativity begates negativity. It not only makes the mind mentally weak, it is also contagious and affects the people around you. 

So is there anyway to mitigate that negativity?

Personally, I tend to think that it’s all in the mind. It’s how you mentally support yourself, and change your mindset and focus your mind to not think of things negatively (I know it’s easier said then done).

It could help if you talk about it, perhaps that would help to release some pent-up frustration.

It could help if you try to distract yourself by doing something else, and eventually forget about it.

But I would think that one of the most powerful methods is goal setting for yourself.

What is your end point?

If you have your retirement plan panned out, perhaps you will just need to be in the workforce for another few years before calling it quits? (Yes I know it’s still a few more years but trust me, just the thought itself can mentally strengthen you up, comparing to your peers who are probably looking at retiring when they are 60 or 65?)

Having said that, not all the suggested methods above work for everyone.

But you will have to find yours.

Because that would make life a lot easier for yourself.

And healthier for those around you.