Dave, an account manager at a large retail organization in Hartford, was scheduled to meet me in Old Saybrook a few weeks ago for a career counseling session. He called to say he was under the weather but could meet by Skype. Dave noted that he didn’t like going to work on days he was feeling great but he couldn’t stand heading into the office when he was not feeling well.
I remember those days well. Attorneys in private practice in large law firms really can’t take sick days. There is a billable hour demand that is already challenging for those who work every working day. Taking off a couple of days means that those lost hours have to be made up at the end of already long days. I don’t get sick too often but, of course, I battle the occasional head cold and vividly recall the misery of feeling physically down while trying to deal with 10 hours of work that I didn’t like.
I’m under the weather today. Nothing terrible, just the congested feeling that fellow allergy sufferers recognize. But I’m having a really good day nonetheless. In fact, I feel better because of work. Why? Because my work is a mood enhancer, not a mood deflator. I rarely tell my friends who are in tough jobs about my work happiness because I know it might bring them down. But I do tell my career counseling clients because some have almost given up hope that there is such a thing as “happy work”.
While it is true that more people are unhappy because of their work than happy due to work, it is equally true that you can become one of the lucky ones. If so, your whole life will change because even your bad work days will be pretty good.
I remember those days well. Attorneys in private practice in large law firms really can’t take sick days. There is a billable hour demand that is already challenging for those who work every working day. Taking off a couple of days means that those lost hours have to be made up at the end of already long days. I don’t get sick too often but, of course, I battle the occasional head cold and vividly recall the misery of feeling physically down while trying to deal with 10 hours of work that I didn’t like.
I’m under the weather today. Nothing terrible, just the congested feeling that fellow allergy sufferers recognize. But I’m having a really good day nonetheless. In fact, I feel better because of work. Why? Because my work is a mood enhancer, not a mood deflator. I rarely tell my friends who are in tough jobs about my work happiness because I know it might bring them down. But I do tell my career counseling clients because some have almost given up hope that there is such a thing as “happy work”.
While it is true that more people are unhappy because of their work than happy due to work, it is equally true that you can become one of the lucky ones. If so, your whole life will change because even your bad work days will be pretty good.