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The Newsy Neighbbour Magazine

www.TheNewsyNeighbour.com

August Issue 118

Article Provided By: Gaylene Smith of McBride Career Group

During my six-minute commute to work this morning, the morning radio deejay cheerfully announced that 50% of Canadians hate their job. 1 out of 2 of us hates our job? That’s a lot of unhappy people. Now I admit I didn’t catch where this statistic came from, but in my defence, it was before 8:00am and my daily dose of caffeine was not on board yet.

Who are these unfortunate people? Septic tank scrubbers? Perhaps it was members of the road kill collectors’ union on a 30-degree sweltering day or possibly they just spoke to a lot of people having a genuinely bad day, but really - 50%? Maybe the survey was taken first thing Monday morning. Who knows, but I know I find this really depressing.

Now, it seems to me, that if half of us hate our jobs, then there has to be something causing all the fed-up frowns and frustration. 

Is it simply a matter of being in the wrong job? Have half of us accepted employment that isn’t a good fit for our abilities, personalities and values? By the time we are old enough to send out a resume and work for a pay cheque, we should have a good idea of who we are and what we like, or - equally as important in my mind – don’t like. For example, I guarantee that if you put me in a job working with toddlers and infants, there will be tantrums. Full blown, kicking and screaming, pounding on the floor, tears streaming down the face – hyperventilating tantrums, and that would be me. 

Maybe half of us have the horrid luck of working for a micro-managing, nit picking, never pleased, sociopathic, nose picking, corporate crusading supervisor. I know I have, but only once or twice. For the vast majority of my career my supervisors have been pretty great. Sure, they have the odd habit or personality tick that might annoy or rub the wrong way but hate – nope not that common, and definitely not half of them. 

Maybe it’s the coworkers. Are they the reason half of us hate our jobs? Do we all have someone in our office that seeks pleasure in our pain? Do we all have a co-worker that seems to fundamental disagree with, and protests, personal hygiene? It is well documented that bullying continues beyond the school grounds and into the work force. Is this the cause for such a depressingly high number of unhappy workers? 

Could it be that as a society our expectations on what our job provides have become unrealistic? We now live in a society where the majority of employees stay in a job for two to three years before moving on. Gone are the days of the company man who starts his career with one company and then 45 years later receives a hand shake, gold watch and retirement accolades from the same company. Did he love his job day in and day out for 45 years? Most likely not but then, perhaps the expectation to love your job wasn’t there. Perhaps that is why people stayed in the same job for long periods of time. And perhaps that is where the problem lies today. Have jobs become more than a means to provide for yourself and family? Do we need more than a pay cheque big enough to cover our expenses and allow for some fun to make us happy? I would think at least 50% of us would say yes. So how then do we go about ensuring happiness in the workplace? Chocolate! Vast amounts of dark chocolate and perhaps the occasional glass of vino while laughing and bonding with (at) your coworkers. No? Well if I knew the answer to guaranteed happiness in the job then perhaps I’d be rich enough not to have to work– regardless if I love the job or hate it.