Quit Feeling Stuck and Unhappy in Your Current Job and Learn to Love It Again or Move On

SherryBlue
Jul 30, 2017 · 7 min read

Whether you have been in the same job for one year or twenty, there are times when you feel like you can’t do one more day of the same ole thing. The job turns sour and there is no joy left in getting up and going in to work on an early morning. It isn’t just you. Everyone gets in a slump and longs for something different at some point in their job history.

You must of course figure out if it is a slump or time to move on. If it is time to move on it might be easier to fall in love with your job again anyway while you transition to the next step.

If you are more than 50% sure that it is time to move on then you need to take on gratitude for the job you currently have for it can get you to where you want to be next. Without a job you may have more free time, but resources are more limited and stress is higher. Learning to use the job you have as a platform to launch you into the next chapter of your career is the key to being happy with where you are now.

One important step to take is to limit the amount of talking you do about your plans. Just because you don’t want to stay in your current job for more years or retire from it, doesn’t mean others feel the same way. Many of your coworkers may be happy with their current job and will resent you wanting to move on and especially resent any words you share about not wanting to stay a part of their team. It can make for an unpleasant situation, so keep your focus, but refrain from sharing your life goals with your coworkers. There should be others in your inner circle to share your career goals with and if not, you should be adding more people to your personal team. I’ve written several helpful articles that will help you do just that:

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Use your current job to keep your financial situation steady and to lean on while you are building an opportunity to get into your dream career. Take classes, learn new skills, volunteer, and do internships while you are working at your current job to build steps toward your new career. In some jobs you can be reimbursed for college courses and certification courses which is definitely a great reason to love the job you have now. The more you do to build your resume then the more skilled you will be for a new employer.

Maybe you don’t want to change jobs or careers and you simply don’t like your job as it stands now. You don’t want to switch at all, but you just aren’t happy with your job anymore. Your job has lost its shine. There are several steps you can take.

The first thing you need to do is take a good hard look at the situation. Maybe it isn’t the job, but it seems that way since it is where you spend a lot of your time. Perhaps you need to make changes elsewhere in your life and let those changes spill over into your job.

Studies have shown that if you make changes in other areas of your life it can lead to higher satisfaction in other areas of your life like relationships and your job.

Concentrate on improving your health and get fit, eat better, and make getting a good night’s sleep a habit. Improve your social life and get out more, try new things, and meet new people. Take on a new hobby or improve skills you have always wanted to be better such as cooking, sewing, painting, carpentry, or gardening, all of which will enhance other areas of your life.

Don’t put off making changes to enhance your personal life, because it will make your professional life better.

Perhaps it’s time to make some changes in your professional life. The first place to start is your work space. Invest in organizational tools for that will make your workspace less cluttered and a more productive environment. Replace old pictures and picture frames with new ones, add a plant if possible such as a spider plant or orchid for one offers more oxygen to your area and the other is a long time bloomer and both are pick me ups for your office area.

If you travel for your job, have your car detailed and invest in someone making it look and feel new to you. If you travel by air make sure you have great luggage to make the situation comfortable and easy. If you work in the retail or service industry, then you are likely standing on your feet a lot and moving around, so take advantage of the opportunity and buy a fitness watch that will let you know how good your job is for your health. Also, invest in good shoes and insoles so you are helping your body stay comfortable.

Whatever you do in your current job there is something you can do to make it feel different and enhance your work environment. Even switching up what you do during breaks and lunch can make a difference. Flipping your usual routine into something different could make things feel new and interesting.

Maybe it’s time you asked your supervisor for more challenges. Taking on new work duties could make your day seem to go faster because it isn’t the same thing you have been doing for years. It also allows you to add to your skill set and that is important even if you aren’t interested in changing your current job situation.

Companies and organizations are making changes now more than they have in years past. Advances in technology and how consumers buy are changing how business is done and that impacts jobs. By choosing to improve your skill set and abilities in your current job you are growing as your company does and that adds to job security.

If your problem with your job is a supervisor or a coworker then make sure you are limiting how much you focus on that person. Talking about them and keeping an eye on that situation makes it front and center. The way to change that is to bring new challenges into your professional life so that you don’t have time to concentrate on the colleague or supervisor that is getting under your skin. Learning to let go of personal feelings, grudges, or judgements is a strong emotional skill that sets you up to be much happier in your personal life and builds leadership skills. You are never going to like everyone and everyone isn’t going to like you. Learning to work with others for the greater good of the project, department, or business is important, so divert your energy elsewhere.

Finally, consider how lucky you are to have the job you currently work in and think back to what it was like when you first applied for the job. Someone believed in you and took a chance that you would contribute to the overall good of the business and that felt good. Reflect on when you started your current job and how much you’ve grown and appreciate your job. There are likely many people that would love to read your job description in the job search ads. Maybe it is just a matter of learning to appreciate what you have that will make things better the next time you have to turn off the alarm clock and get out of bed to ready for a day at work.

Your job is where you spend the majority of your time. Making changes in one part of your life will impact another. Perhaps you’d love your job more if you did more outside of it. Maybe you need to add to your skill set while you are employed, or maybe you need to start looking and move on soon. Being happy where you are isn’t going to just happen, it is going to take you being invested in finding solutions and trying to make it work for you.

Fall in love with your job again or move on and find a new love and let someone else have the opportunity to find fulfillment in your old job. Being happy with your job and career is best for you, your workplace, the company, and your family. Make it happen.

Thank you for reading — it means a lot to me. I appreciate your sharing as well. Please follow me on Medium, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn — I’d love to connect and be a part of your network team. On social media I share my own articles, but also those that I find helpful and relevant to business, success, entrepreneurship, leadership, community enhancement, and personal development. You can find out more about me at SherryHBlue.com.

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