When is a tough job just tough? When is it harmful?
In athletics, it’s common for someone to push through the pain of exercise, only to find out later that the pain was an injury and they just made it worse. That’s because, in the heat of the moment, it’s nearly impossible to tell the feel of the “burn” from the feel of a “tweak.” After some time passes, though, it becomes pretty obvious which it was: you’ve either been made stronger or made weaker. Either you can run faster or you are stuck on crutches.
The pain of your job can be the same way. There are times where the pain represents an opportunity for growth, and there are times where it indicates that you need to stop. And just like athletics, telling the difference between the two can be difficult—sometimes very difficult.
Why is it so hard to tell the difference? Over time, it has become noble to grin and bare suffering at work. From entry-level to CEO, there is a lot of advice out there designed to dull the pain and keep you pressing on—motivational tactics if you will. Pay your dues and stick it out and feed your family and so on. While we all need a little encouragement during the tough patches, there comes a time where the temporary pain-relief we get from those mantras only serves to hide a worsening situation rather than contribute to our development.
So be careful with that kind of advice. If you are miserable in your job, there’s a great chance that it’s not the right job for you. Spend some time and effort shaking off some of those clichés and investigating in your job-fit. Pushing through a bad-fit job is not noble—it’s destructive.
Think long-term; don’t keep hurting yourself. Instead of a career-ending injury, maybe you can find an injury-ending career.
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2 responses so far ↓
1 Jack // Jun 28, 2007 at 11:07 am
I enjoyed your message, but for most people I believe they are just happy to maintain the status quo. People do not put as much time into thinking about work(outside of work). And only realize they are unhappy after stopping and really thinking about where their lives have gone.
2 Heath // Jun 30, 2007 at 7:58 am
Thanks for making me think. I believe if someone has gone years without a pain-free moment, it becomes hard to recognize that there could be improvement, or even relief.
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