Is working 9-to-5 a trap?
Have you ever felt trapped with your job?
Don’t worry you are not the only one, every second person I know has felt the same way at some part of their life. In fact, I have felt same for many a times and I just wonder why we feel that way.
You must have heard a lot about the harms of 9 to 5 job. How it can kill your desires and make you feel worthless? Perhaps, read tons of books and articles on how to get out from this trap.
Truth is that no one is holding you captive in a 9 to 5 job without your consent. — Source Quora
I know people who have worked in 9 to 5 throughout their lives and have never complained about it because they knew their actual potential and were aware what they were doing with their lives. Not everyone is a genius. I am not saying that you lack the ability to be one, but while trying to be one you must manifest desirable traits such as courage, dedication, creativity and put your heart and soul in what you do. Then, you might possibly qualify but there is no guarantee.
Although, I don’t disagree that 9 to 5 job can be demanding and may sound dreadful but the returns it provides are quite substantial. It provides a sense of security, adequate money to pay your bills and work life balance. Now a days jobs do provide flexibility in terms of working from home and working hours. Not just that, 9 to 5 job can help you in finding your perfect life partner (just like me).
For me, continuous learning is crucial and my job has provided me enough opportunities to enhance my knowledge and skillset. I moved up the ranks from a Trainee to a Team Leader which helped me to improve my soft skills and develop basic leadership skills. Having said that, 9 to 5 job can satisfy your learning hunger and provides you sufficient chance to grow and upskill.
Knowledge gained through experience is far superior and many a times more useful than bookish knowledge.
Listing some of the reasons that makes you feel trapped at 9 to 5.
1. Bad Boss: There is no typical definition of a bad boss because no two people are same. However, there are certain characteristics which make them bad boss. There are many characteristics but I am going to talk about the few most common here.
a) Micromanage — They lack trust and would give you every minute instruction on how to manage your work. Unfortunately, I have been micromanaged many a times in my life. It kills your creativity and makes you feel worthless because they force you to get the work done their way.
It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do. — Steve Jobs
b) Unreachable — I reckon they are highly dangerous as they won’t respond to your emails and messages and later blame you for any failure or miss outs. In fact, the most frustrating feeling at the work is being ignored and unheard.
c) Take Credit — They are the most opportunist people. Many times my friends have complained that they slogged for weeks and put their best to prepare the presentations which were sought after by management and how their boss have presented them as their creation.
d) Bully — They create an environment of fear within their team to keep the control in their hand. They won’t let you progress and will wait for opportunity to harm you. My wife has an experience working with a such a boss and as a result of that she resigned from her job and took a 6-month break from work.
If you have worked with a bad boss for over a period, there is high likelihood that you will feel trapped and would wish to find other means to earn your bread and butter.
2. Toxic Environment: If you somehow manage to survive a bad boss you will find some colleagues who are spreading venom at your workplace. People envy you for no reason. They will do anything to frustrate you and give you hard time. One frustrated and negative teammate is enough to spoil the environment of entire team. There is that famous saying
One Bad Fish Can Spoil the whole pond.
Ultimately, it’s your responsibility to manage these people along with your work so that you can enjoy doing what you are doing.
3. Lack of Courage: Taking responsibility of your action require courage. Lot of us don’t take responsibility of our actions. As a general tendency we tend to get comfortable with what we do over a period. That’s why we need to ask some questions to ourselves on timely basis.
· Am I enjoying my current job?
· Am I doing anything to upskill myself to do my job better?
· Is my current job in line with my long-term goals?
If the answer to any of the above question is no, then it means it’s time to show some courage. Making a shift is not easy and it can make you uncomfortable for a while. Think about how many times you fell before you learn to ride the bicycle but once you learned you can enjoy it forever.
4. Fancy desires: We look for shortcuts to become successful, want to earn more money, look ribbed and become popular, all that in no time. Social media adds fuel to the fire, its impacts are worst and profound. We keep close watch on every small activity of our colleagues, friends, and favorite celebrities and get fascinated with their posts. I have come across hundreds of marketing advertisements to help me become financially independent, leave 9 to 5 job and lose 15 kilos in 21 days. These adds baits on our vulnerability. All this results in nothing but just paying for their membership and wasting time. We need to be smart to make choices in our life. If 9 to 5 provides you right balance, then there is no need to get trapped to fulfil your fantasies.
5. Travel Time: I always try to stay near to my workplace because adding 30 mins of travel time at morning and evening can add great level of frustration, but this is not feasible for everyone. There is nothing much that can be done other then finding a job near to your place or moving closer to office.
Final thoughts:
While if you are still not clear about what you want to do with your life working in 9 to 5 is a great prospect. As it gives ability to pay your bills, socialize and make some good friends, and above all gives you practical learning experience which you don’t get in school or college.
It is completely an individual choice to do what they want with their lives. I don’t believe that anyone can make you trap in anything unless you wish.
No wonder what anyone says if you enjoy your job and feel inspired and motivated to go to work every morning then you are at right place. It’s not just a job it has given you an identity and people know you by what you do. If you feel proud in introducing yourself with your professional designation, then that is a sign that you love your job and must continue pursuing it until you find something more interesting.
