You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Write yourself an insurance policy. Take yourself out to a cafe or sack out on the sofa. Find a location that makes you feel absolutely at ease and comfortable. Give yourself a time limit of an hour to write down a list of at least ten things you hate about your job. Really lean into your misery and get every possible thing that bugs you out on paper.
If one page turns into 10 or one hour stretches out into 10 hours, just keep going. The idea of setting a time limit and a limited number of items is to simply get you kick started. Get your misery out on paper and you will feel infinitely purged.
Keep this piece of paper as a reminder of all you despise. Consider it a free life insurance policy to ensure your future well being. Refer back to it when you have misgivings. Use your general malaise and dissatisfaction to fuel your motivation to take action.
If you find you still can not take action, here is another easy thing to try. One time when I could not make a decision to switch jobs, I turned to a friend of mine, Jennifer Butler who has made many bold career moves such as quitting her job as a school teacher to become a sound engineer in London, England.
When faced with a life changing decision, she suggested trying this simple visualization exercise. Picture yourself at 75 years old, looking back on your life, think about the opportunity you are about to take on and how do you feel about it? Somehow, it provides the right kind of emotional connection to help make a defining decision.
Excerpt from the forthcoming book Getting Dirty. If you would like me to let you know when the book becomes available, just send your e-mail to adriennejenkins@verizon.net.
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