The Real World — Enjoy Working
Have you ever wondered why do we say “back to reality?” Aren’t we supposed to be excited to go back to reality? I’m sure you’ve heard the idiom before, but what does it mean and why do we use it? We can relate this saying to our own lives when we are about to end a fun or relaxing time with friends, family, or even ourselves. People dread going back to work, even if they love their jobs. What can we do to make sure we enjoy our work and make our jobs less stressful?
Why do we dread going back to work so much? We have everything we need to be happy there — we have a paycheck, a steady routine, and the ability to build relationships with coworkers. But we often count down the days until the weekend.
There are lots of reasons people don’t enjoy going to work because of workplace stress (yes,it is an actual thing). According to estimates, 90 percent of workers are “not engaged” or “actively disengaged” from their jobs. Most employees spend “half of their waking lives doing things they really don’t want to do in places they don’t particularly want to be” according to Barry Schwartz, a psychology professor from Swarthmore College.
Schwartz concludes many individuals start off in their occupations being enthusiastic about a “variety of aspirations” that go beyond the paycheck, but eventually they find out that other factors take precedence over those aspirations.
You may not love your job, but you’re doing something that needs to be done! Whether it’s changing bed pans for patients or negotiating multi-million dollar mergers and acquisitions, there will always be someone who is grateful for your hard work.
So next time you’re feeling down about going back to work after an amazing vacation or just a quick weekend getaway, try reminding yourself of this: someone is glad that you’re working hard so they can enjoy their life a bit more because of it. Because if nobody was doing it, none of us will enjoy our vacations or anything else we could do.
