I overheard a
conversation between two officer workers at lunch the other day. They were
commiserating about what a hard life they had at work and how rubbish it all
was.
Just as they were
finishing their lunch break, I heard one say:
"Nothing
(insert expletive) changes around here, I wonder what (another expletive) we're
in for this afternoon?" to which his friend heartily agreed, and off they
trooped, back to their desks, like good worker ants.
I should point out
that both men have worked for their company for as long as I can remember, so
since at least 1999. That's 13 years!
They haven't done
anything much to try and change their position in that time so why would they
expect anything to be different?
I was a little
shocked by their negative attitude, but even more shocked by the fact that
although they clearly weren't particularly happy or fulfilled, they didn't
seem prepared to do anything about it either.
Then it hit me. Maybe they just didn't realise that there was
anything they could do.
Change is scary for
anybody, whether you want to admit it or not. I had to conclude that the two
men in question either just weren't that motivated to change and find something
new, or they were too frightened to start afresh.
I have heard similar
laments in staff feedback forums, where people go on about how unfulfilled they
are, how much they dislike their job, their conditions, their desk, the person
they have to sit next to etc. They all
have one big thing in common. They are all happy to sit and whinge about it,
but almost none of them has taken any real action to make themselves happier,
or to change their situation. At best they might go and work for a different
company, and just find new things to whinge about.
There's a recession,
so the media keep telling us, and the company I'm talking about (which shall
remain nameless), is actually a pretty good one to work for. They are doing
well, and the staff have had bonuses & pay rises this year, there's lots of
recognition for achievement, internal progression opportunities, flexible
working hours if needed and you are pretty well looked after. To be fair, things could be a lot worse than
working there.
And yet despite all
this, the staff whinge!
Why all the
whinging?!
Could the whinging
be a smokescreen to hide their own personal inadequacies, their own fear of
change and lack of getting up off their backsides to do something? A way for
their mind to keep them conveniently distracted so they don't try to step out
of the mould and make a change?
It's true that the
mind doesn't like change. Specifically a very ancient and basic part of your
mind called the Limbic Brain. Change is unknown, change is scary. Your limbic
brain will try all kinds of tricks to keep you from changing.
Don't get me wrong,.
This part of your mind really does have your best interests at heart, it wants
you to survive. Change is an unknown quantity, and for all it knows you could
get eaten by a bear.
But the key word
here is survive. It knows nothing of
being happy and fulfilled, it's just trying to keep you alive. Unfortunately, if working in an unfulfilling office job
and feeling depressed each day keeps you alive then that's cool.
If you start to have
dreams about new things which are unknown to your limbic brain, it's going to
freak out and try to stop you. It does this using fear. Fear is the limbic brain's best defence and
the one thing that holds people back from living their dreams. It's not lack of
money, lack of resource, lack of education. You can get all of these things,
you can work around them. If you're determined enough you'll always find what
you need to succeed, but you can't do any of these things if you're paralysed
by fear.
In the words of
Susan Jeffers, if you want to be happy and fulfilled, it's time to "Feel
the Fear, and Do It Anyway!"
So get your big girl
(or big boy) panties on, get out there, start living your dreams and stop
whinging!
Recommended
reading: Feel the Fear & Do It Anyway, Susan Jeffers
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