It's Not About What You Do, But How You Think About What You Do

After reading the “Just Quit” your job survey results it has occurred to me that people in most every profession is and/or could be miserable doing what they are doing.

It’s not about the profession.

It’s about the mindset while working in that profession.

This makes me think of Tolstoy’s three questions:

Here people are in lives where they have to work for a living.  They are the wage earners. Most people are miserable going to work everyday. It doesn’t seem to matter how much they are paid.  Doesn’t seem to matter the title. Still, they are miserable.  

So, then what are the answers to Tolstoy’s questions?

It does NOT matter what you are doing.  It matters what you THINK about what you are doing NOW.  

Get beyond wanting to leave.  Get beyond wanting to be in another/different profession.  Just be okay with what is right now.  

Yep, you are miserable. GET OVER IT. Until you can get over it, it will continue, no matter if you leave where you are, go someplace else…you’ll end up miserable again.  

Challenge: be happy in your misery…embrace the suck.  If you can do that you can move on…until then…misery will follow you where ever you go.

Don’t believe me….below are the professions of folks who are miserable enough to complete the “Just Quit” your job survey… just this month:

Accreditation	Yesterday, 6:19PM
Writer	Yesterday, 5:15PM
Manager	Yesterday, 3:44AM
Manufacturing	Friday, Jun 17th 2:31PM
Claims adjudicator	Friday, Jun 17th 8:41AM
casino job	Thursday, Jun 16th 7:41PM
casino job	Thursday, Jun 16th 7:41PM
Part time Cashier and Caterer	Thursday, Jun 16th 6:38PM
Project Manager Engineer/Microelectronics/technology	Thursday, Jun 16th 11:20AM
customer care specialist	Thursday, Jun 16th 12:33AM
Accounting	Wednesday, Jun 15th 11:40AM
Slot tech	Wednesday, Jun 15th 11:46AM
Slot tech	Wednesday, Jun 15th 11:46AM
Public servant	Wednesday, Jun 15th 7:22AM
Musician	Wednesday, Jun 15th 4:17AM
Development assistant	Tuesday, Jun 14th 7:46PM
Retail mamanagement	Tuesday, Jun 14th 3:12PM
Garbo truck driver	Tuesday, Jun 14th 9:04AM
Dentist	Tuesday, Jun 14th 1:59AM
mental health	Monday, Jun 13th 6:05PM
Accountant	Monday, Jun 13th 5:31PM
Telecom Engineer	Monday, Jun 13th 3:26PM
Assistant Account Manager/Retail/Design	Monday, Jun 13th 11:39AM
Retail	Sunday, Jun 12th 2:38PM
IT	Sunday, Jun 12th 1:06PM
Accounting	Sunday, Jun 12th 9:27AM
receptionist	Sunday, Jun 12th 8:56AM
Design engineer	Saturday, Jun 11th 3:19AM
Human resource director	Saturday, Jun 11th 1:38AM
attorney	Friday, Jun 10th 11:11PM
Training & Development	Thursday, Jun 9th 11:35PM
Museum/Arts/Education	Thursday, Jun 9th 11:02PM
Customer Service	Thursday, Jun 9th 10:34PM
Nonprofit	Thursday, Jun 9th 5:29PM
Food safety officer	Thursday, Jun 9th 5:45PM
Hospitality	Thursday, Jun 9th 4:49PM
Sales	Thursday, Jun 9th 11:23AM
engineering	Thursday, Jun 9th 9:24AM
engineer	Thursday, Jun 9th 6:53AM
disability support worker	Thursday, Jun 9th 3:57AM
Accountant	Thursday, Jun 9th 12:03AM
Insurance	Wednesday, Jun 8th 11:54PM
Banking	Wednesday, Jun 8th 11:34PM
Finance	Wednesday, Jun 8th 9:40PM
Retail	Wednesday, Jun 8th 5:32PM
E commerce	Wednesday, Jun 8th 3:53PM
Admin PR	Wednesday, Jun 8th 3:17PM
Software Consultant	Wednesday, Jun 8th 1:49PM
Resturant management	Wednesday, Jun 8th 12:39PM
Pharmaceutical Industry	Tuesday, Jun 7th 9:55PM
Export	Tuesday, Jun 7th 2:32PM
i am on dis ability	Tuesday, Jun 7th 11:09AM
Email marketing	Tuesday, Jun 7th 6:41AM
recruit	Monday, Jun 6th 5:17PM
Superintendent	Monday, Jun 6th 2:16PM
administrative assistant	Monday, Jun 6th 1:36PM
Manufacturing	Monday, Jun 6th 10:41AM
Education	Sunday, Jun 5th 9:58PM
Designer	Sunday, Jun 5th 8:35PM
Cashier/supervisor	Sunday, Jun 5th 3:32AM
CNA	Sunday, Jun 5th 3:29AM
Oil	Saturday, Jun 4th 6:02PM
journalist	Saturday, Jun 4th 11:11AM
Banker; Team Lead Financial Literacy	Saturday, Jun 4th 10:27AM
Pharmacy student assistant job	Friday, Jun 3rd 6:30AM
Logistics	Friday, Jun 3rd 5:50AM
Director of Patient Experience	Thursday, Jun 2nd 5:30PM
Purchasing	Thursday, Jun 2nd 3:25PM
Accountant	Thursday, Jun 2nd 10:11AM
Assistant Director of Guest Experience	Wednesday, Jun 1st 11:11PM
Investor Relations	Wednesday, Jun 1st 8:37PM
Retail	Wednesday, Jun 1st 8:55PM
7th grade ELA teacher	Wednesday, Jun 1st 6:52PM
Personal Assistant	Wednesday, Jun 1st 4:52AM

Today and everyday when you wake up don’t think about how miserable you are.  Even if you want to be doing something difference (and especially if you don’t know what that something different is) think about how you COULD be happy doing what you’re doing, right where you are with the people you are with….why?….because it will help you move on.  

You WILL move on.  Why?  Life is about change. Eventually things will change, don’t delay change by NOT learning the lesson of how to sing while walking in the storm. SING, SMILE. RISE ABOUT IT.

Be Grateful When Things Don't Work Out

Why? 

Because what you had planned was TOO SMALL. 

• If you are stressing right now about your job..STOP STRESSING.
• If you are desperate to get out of your job situation…STOP BEING DESPERATE.
• If you don’t think you can go another day working where you are working…STOP TRIPPING.

STOP.

Things could be horrible where you work, but going to another job does not mean it’s going to be ANY better. JUST QUIT is NOT about a JOB.  JUST QUIT is NOT about a CAREER…or a PROFESSION…IT IS ABOUT YOUR LIFE. It’s about planning your life.

So if you have been looking for a job, not getting interviews or even if you are getting interviews and you are not getting the jobs…STOP STRESSING, BEING DESPERATE and TRIPPING.

Ask yourself the below three questions?

1. Today, if you had all the money that you needed to live for the REST OF YOUR LIFE what would you do?
2. Today, if you went to the doctors and they told you that you had five more years to live what would you do?
3. Today, if you went to the doctors and they told you that you only had 24 hours to live, what would you have WISHED you would have done with your life?

I can bet you that GET ANOTHER JOB is not the answer to any of those questions. IF you do still have a job…be grateful…some people don’t and can’t find one. So first be grateful that you have a job and if you have a job with a decent salary, benefits and a 401K/pension you should be getting down on your knees and praying to God or whoever you pray to because you are doing better than most people.  This is sad, but this the world we live in.

Change your perspective about your life and start planning to do those things you WANT to do.  Figure that out.  What do you want to do? What do you want to accomplish? While you are miserable in your job, figure it out.  Nobody can get inside of your head and make you STRESS about your job, EXCEPT you.  If you take control of your mind (your thoughts) then you can manage to get up, go in and be THINKING about what you want to do and DOING something about it in your free time. What is that you say?  You’re depressed? You’re drained after your job?  Well JOIN THE CLUB.  It’s a worldwide problem, people.  It’s not just you. Know that this is a worldwide phenomena, of people working in meaningless stressful jobs.  

So, if your mediocre plans aren’t working out…GREAT…you’ve been spared…because…you’re supposed to do something BIGGER, BETTER, BOLDER with your life.

NOW….GET UP and GET STARTED

 

Take Off Your Mask

Leaving the library to get Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s The Miracle of Mindfulness book I looked to my left and saw an art gallery that was new.  It was pouring down raining, but I circled back around and decided to check it out. What a find it was.  Beautiful gallery, shop, artwork and owner.

The below is a piece that I brought. 

He called it ZERO, because that is how the artist was feeling in his job. He was smiling on the outside but miserable inside. If you look closely you will see the Zero on his chest, and the hand removing the smiling mask.

The artist said the flames on the left is how he felt in his life and at that job and the bubbles on the right is where he knew his life could be if he followed his passions and love of art.

Well today, this gentleman owns a fabulous and beautiful art gallery, shop and studio. No longer a ZERO.  What about you?  Are you smiling on the outside but sad on the inside? Take off your mask. Be honest with yourself. Move to the right, set sail and soar.

Why Not Basic Income?

“It’s something new…That will never happen…We’ve never done anything like that before…People need to work…People will be lazy…You shouldn’t get anything for free.”  On and on it goes….

If I did not get survey entries DAILY from people SUFFERING in jobs for one reason or another I would not know the extent of the problem.

People want to be creative and productive. They want to be happy.  They want to just  live.  They want to see their families. They want to use their greatest talents and skills. Mostly people just want to do something they love doing AND be – able – to – eat. That is not too much to ask.  It’s not. It is a reasonable request and getting a basic income could help make that a reality.   At a minimum it’s something to be considered. 

Today, May 1^st is Basic Income Day and I will be tweeting out survey entries throughout the day so those in tweeter land can see that there is a WORLDWIDE need for a fix.

The below is the ThunderClap for Basic Income Day. — It’s a great read with great reference resources and a call to action.

What would you do with a monthly salary, separate and in addition to any other salary, but earned as a right of citizenship and sufficient for you to meet your most basic needs for life? That’s basic income, and that’s what Basic Income Day is about in recognition of the 21st century.

Popularly known as May Day or Labour Day, May 1st has long been a day to internationally recognize the contributions of the global labor movement and its many struggles and achievements over the years. However, where unions once empowered labor and gave us the 40-hour week and the 8-hour day, globalization and advances in technology have severely eroded the ability of unions to effect change.

As automation of the workplace continues to the tune of potentially eliminating half of all current jobs by 2033, and in addition eroding any sense of financial security or consumer buying power through the growth of part-time jobs, low-paid work, temp labor, gig labor, freelancing, and zero-hour contracts, unconditional basic incomerepresents the ability to empower all labor on an individual basis. A newly gained ability to say “No” to any and all employers would have an undeniable effect on individual bargaining power. That means greater sharing of profits and higher wages, better hours and workplace conditions, more benefits, etc.

The achievement of basic income would be the achievement of a new voluntary contract on more equal footing between employer and employee, including the empowerment of the employee to become their own employer by UBI’s functioning as venture capital for the people. It would mean a new age of greater equality, innovation,productivity, and entrepreneurship, where all are finally free to pursue the goals they wish to pursue, and all work could be recognized for its societal value, instead of only paid work as it stands now. Isn’t it time we started recognizing all the important labor going unpaid?

Even Andy Stern, former President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in a forthcoming book explains how basic income is the future of the labor movement, and the policy we must all together now strive for in the 21st century. It’s an idea whose time has come.

So what can you do?

There are many ways to support the idea and to help grow the movement for Basic Income. For one, take part in Basic Income Day by supporting this Thunderclap and by changing your profile photos and sharing basic income content across all social media networks on May 1st. Last year we reached 700,000 people. This year, let’s reach over 1 million!

In Switzerland there will be over 100 robots protesting with the demand for humans to let them do their work. Other robots all over the world are encouraged to join in with their own local robot protests.

What else can you do any day of the year?

• Sign a petition
• Join your national advocacy group
• Spread the message on Social Media – Add #Basicincome to your posts and also add the hashtag to your profile photos
• Study and discuss it – Share Basic Income news with your friends and family and start local meetup groups
• Contact Politicians or the Media – Start to demand it and they will start to listen
• Donate to GiveDirectly to help fund the world’s largest universal basic income experiment so far

Join the growing global movement to create an income floor for everyone.

This is the century of technological emancipation from labor itself. We made it. We’re here. We need only actually embrace it. Unemployment is not something to fear. It is something to welcome.

Without basic income, on the 1st of May we celebrate Human Labour Day.

With basic income, tomorrow we celebrate Machine Labour Day.

Just Quit is Possible...Really It Is...

…not tomorrow…or next week…you CAN Just Quit today if you want to.

Just Quit thinking it’s hopeless. It’s not. 

Just Quit thinking it’s about money in the bank…nope…it’s about ALL available sources of money. You might have to cash it out…vacation, 401K, the house, stuff (or junk) you don’t need; stop buying (or charging) more junk you don’t need; stop going to get $7 Latte’s; stop giving your money to a “church” that wouldn’t give you or a needy person a dime if they needed it (the truth hurts); and a bunch of other stuff we do just because that’s what we do. STOP DOING IT or AT A MINIMUM be MINDFUL of what you are doing.

Just Quit thinking you can’t have your own thing. You better. You better figure it out if you haven’t already. If you are sitting in a job — miserable— and you don’t have your own something  (hobby, website, side business, family business) then don’t blame anyone else for your misery.  Look in the mirror. Instead of wasting time watching television and WORST paying to watch t.v. you need to CREATE something of your own. It doesn’t matter if you can’t figure out HOW you’re going to make money on that thing. You might, you might not.  You just need to be a CREATOR and not just a CONSUMER.

Just Quit thinking everybody else is happy and doing better than you.  They aren’t. If any of us had  a medical emergency today, you, me and most everybody else is in big trouble.  An emergency room visit and hospital stay could wipe us out. Sad, but true. Most folks would and do struggle to pay their bills. So, the folks next door and/or your co-workers are in the struggle with you, so be kind. Smile. Laugh. Make someone ELSE’s day.

So….today…Just Quit feeling hopeless. Start there. You have the Power to see the Possibilities, if you want to.  I don’t say this lightly.  I read the survey results of folks that find this site. FOLKS ARE MISERABLE ALL OVER THE WORLD. All I am saying is that YOU can change your life AND this has NOTHING to do with a JOB or where you work.  You can get through that.  You might not think that you can, but you can. You have so far.

Just Quit & Live is bigger than a job. It is about your LIFE and what you are living to DO and BE. What is your contribution, cause, and mission?   Go & Do That.

Just Quit & Live is a PROCESS. It starts with mindfulness, then you create something, all the while being kind to others who cross your path.  IF you do this…you will not have time or energy to be miserable in your j-o-b. It will pass. It will. Try it.

May you be happy, Ridea

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Human Economy Is Coming

For those who want to “Just Quit” their jobs, don’t fret.  You are AHEAD of others who are settling, those who are just going thru the motions or pretending. 

This morning I heard Tiffany Shlain talk about Growing Up the Internet and it was like the cacophony of noise in my head turned into a melody.  I realized that this segment of the working world population (those who find my blog) want something more, and below is what they crave…the something more… 

SOMETHING MORE:

Stop complaining, right now and today.  This moment.  STOP COMPLAINING. STOP FRETTING about how much you hate your JOB.  Be GRATEFUL that you do. You could be one of those SETTLING in a job.

NOW what do you START doing? START developing the skills needed for the new Human Economy that is coming.  Watch the below video—I mean really watch it, then start researching and working on developing  the below skills: 

BE CURIOUS about what interest you.   Get CREATIVE – make something! Take INITIATIVE – do something! Be INCLUSIVE – get beyond labels.  Have EMPATHY – step into the “other’s” shoes…see life thru their eyes.  That is PLENTY to DO…you won’t have time to be wrapped up in a job structure that is dead or dying out….get ahead of the pack…chart the course “Just Quit & Live” people….  

The Adaptable Mind from The Moxie Institute on Vimeo.

What is Mental Slavery?

The below comment came in this weekend from someone who works in Ad Sales for a Magazine:

“I feel like a mental slave every day. My ancestors were slaves, fought for their freedom, and now I am letting myself get trapped into legal and socially acceptable slavery.”

Mental Slavery: What a concept. Many workers aren’t working in physically exhausting jobs, but are mentally exhausted.  Just googling mental slavery was interesting.

Letting yourself get trapped:  The first step to getting unstuck is to admit that you are stuck and feel like a slave. You can then do something about it.

Legal and Socially Acceptable Slavery: It is called the labor “market” after all. The only way around this is to create something of value, live frugally and not HAVE to participate in the labor market, or to be able do it on your own terms.

Fighting for your freedom:  You can break the cycle of mental slavery.  Admit it. Accept it. Take Action. Let Go. Let Come. 

The more I analyze the comments that are coming in the more I know that an awakening is happening worldwide.  People are waking up.  No longer buying into allowing the rich to get richer while they labor and suffer with little reward.