New Year, New Job

Did you wake up on New Year’s Day to find your excitement at a new year nipped in the bud by the realization that you had to go back to work the next day? If so, you are not alone. In 2017, Gallup’s State of the American Workplace report found that 51% of their participants were uninterested in their jobs, and 16% straight up hated their jobs. If you fall into that 51% or especially that 16%, there is no time like the present to apply for a new job.

We can all relate to the malaise that repetitive, limiting, and paper-pushing employment brings. That malaise grows worse if hostility is thrown in the mix. In fact, in a 2017 study conducted by the University of Manchester, it can be more damaging to your mental health to be in a job you hate than to be unemployed!

Think about how much time you spend at your job. If it’s a full-time position, odds are you are spending upwards of forty hours a week at your workplace. If you get eight hours of sleep a night, you spend just as much time working during the work week as you do sleeping. And let’s be real; who’s getting eight hours of sleep every night? Spending 40+ hours a week in a toxic environment causes mental health issues like stress, depression, and anxiety, all which can lead to poor physical health issues, like insomnia, over-eating, and adverse cardiovascular conditions.

But let’s not just focus on the negative impetus to find a new job. By now, we can all acknowledge that a bad job is worse for you than you think. Could a good job, however, be better than you might think? According to the World Health Organization, “Work is at the very core of contemporary life for most people, providing financial security, personal identity, and an opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to community life.” Being in a good job allows for greater personal happiness and security. You’ll feel more cheerful, energized, and creative. You deserve to be in a job that makes you feel good. Don’t just get out of a dull or downright bad job to escape from the doldrums or the disaster; do it because of all of the good it will bring you.

So in 2019, resolve to make this year the year you find a job you don’t hate. In fact, shoot for the stars: make 2019 the year you find a job you love. Do your mind and body a favor. And do your workplace a favor! If you are unhappy, odds are that the work you are producing isn’t flourishing either. You deserve a job that helps you blossom as a human being, and a place you can pour into with joy in return. It’s a new year. It’s time for a new job. And who knows? Maybe you will find a new you, too.