by Venchito Tampon | Last Updated on November 16, 2018

When I hear a person says, “I don’t like my job!”, I try to understand where he or she is coming from. Because the truth is…there are unlovable jobs. These are jobs people don’t want to stay in the next 30 years of their lives.

If you are the person who drags himself to the office every single day, the question you should ask yourself is this:

What am I doing about this situation?

Because the truth is, no matter how miserable you think about your job, if you don’t take actions to be able to change your situation, you will always remain miserable.

Let me give you another question to ponder as well.

What is it really the thing that makes me hate this job?

There are three things that I’ve seen people get into this zone of hating jobs. Of course, there are other more reasons, but these things below I hope can help you assess your job and yourself.

By identifying the reason behind your job hate, you’ll better off than anyone else who just complain about their situation.

Here they are.

Want the industry but don’t love the job.

You may have landed on the job that you don’t like to pursue in the first place. Perhaps, you have several choices when you’re looking for a new job, and ended up in the company where you’re in right now. No pending interviews (that was the only interview you’ve got) and you badly needed the job at that time.

You ended up in your job right now.

Be grateful.

This is not just a motivational advice, but a practical thing to do.

Be grateful. There are other people who don’t have jobs, but you have one. Instead of saying, “I don’t like my job”, say instead, “I love the fact that I have a job” (c: Francis Kong).

Because when you’re grateful, it opens up opportunities you’d have never seen.

Don’t have a victim mindset, as if you’re the only miserable person in the world. Be grateful.

Next, consider your job as a transitional job. Meaning your job may not necessarily the job that you want. But take all the steps to develop your attitude towards work. Attend seminars and trainings outside your company if there are no trainings inside your company (or just take more trainings if you want to learn more).

Learn, and grow. Be more valuable in the marketplace. And when the time comes that there’s an opportunity to go to the next job, you now have the vitality and character to go all in. But as you patiently wait and learn, do your very best work every day.

Love the job, but I’m not just passionate.

There is this one idea that everyone wants to share, like or talk about. It is the idea of passion.

“Look for a job that you’re passionate about”, they say. “Find your passion and make it your profession”.

Really?

How many passions do you have in your entire life? 3? 5? How many other passion other people have that later in life shift to another passion?

Truth is:

Your passion changes. Your passion eight years ago may be different from your passion today. Your passion today might be different twenty years from now.

Not only that passion changes, but people also don’t define passion the way it should be defined.

When you say passion, it’s literal meaning is “suffering“.

So when you say things are not doing well for me, things are too difficult in my line of work, and I want to look for a job that gives me passion – the truth is, that’s not a passion at all.

Passion is not coming from external things – not coming from your jobs either. It is internal. It is perseverance, it is going through hard times, being patient and not quitting.

Define passion not by your own terms, but by what it really means.

Hate the job, because I don’t want to work

This is difficult, because no matter what job and company you are in, you’ll never do your best.

Truth to tell, when people say they hate their jobs because they don’t want to work, they have the wrong attitude and perspective about work. There are some people who even think that work is a curse. Is work a curse?

No.

In fact, work is a blessing. And work may not necessarily mean your job. Work is the meaningful contribution that you do. It’s the value of your job.

In other words, you may have a job but it doesn’t mean you’re really working. It’s like having a gadget but are not functioning well.

Work is the contribution. It is the function. That is why there is a working mom. She may not have a job, but she is working as a mother.

If you’re in this situation of hating your job because you don’t want to work, change your perspective. Work is a blessing. Give your best. Develop the attitude. Avoid neglects. Because no matter what job or industry you’re in, if your attitude flops, you will always hate your job.

Greener grass is made, not found.

Sean Si nailed this statement in his latest post about shifting jobs.

This is true, and let me add. The grass is greener where you water it.

Happiness is not found outside. The joy of working should be internal. So the next time you think about your unlovable job, don’t just play like a victim. Do something about it, even if it takes you to burn the midnight oil to take some evening classes/course, read books, acquire new skills in order to transition to another job that you really like.

And while doing that, don’t forget. It’s not just the RIGHT job that will make you succeed and sustain it. It’s your character that will make you remain at the top.