“Man, are you high?”

 This entry was posted on Friday, January 11th, 2019 at 3:19 pm

2018 was the most fulfilling year of my life, professionally…. which, strangely enough, had a role in my mental state and ability to handle adversity slightly better. Actually though, it started in 2017. I had one of those jobs that, on paper, was good, but for some reason I had lost the ability (or willingness is probably more accurate) to see the good things.

In 2017 I was stuck. I had a good job, had a lot of good things about it, but I was really struggling to see any of them. I ended up doing something that does not come easy, or natural, to me. I started to notice that there were some days when I had a bit more pep in my step when I left work, like a high. Initially I chocked it up to excuses and not looking at it pragmatically…. but then I started to really take notice. What I discovered was that there were parts of the job that on certain days, due to certain circumstances, left me feeling fulfilled, which in turn gave me a bit of a pep in my step.

Ok, so let’s do some math.

·       120 hours in a week (Monday – Friday)

·       40 – 60 hours of work in a week (full-time)

o   Be honest with yourself. Do you take work home, do you check emails on your phone, are you ever on your laptop when not at work?

·       6 – 9 hours of sleep.

 

A step further, lets take a look at a job that is roughly Monday – Friday (8’ish – 5’ish)

·       Wake up 6:30am or 7am

·       Same drive I always do

·       Work until 5, 5:30, 6, 6:30, 7 (you choose)

·       Get home, visit, maybe watch a little TV, read, whatever. Get ready for next day? Go right to sleep?

·       Wake up, do it again.

 

Now, let’s do the math.

·       120 hours – 50 hours work (approximation) – 40 hours of sleep (if you get 8 a night, lets be honest most people don’t) = 30 hours extra (or 6 hours a day)

o   Here’s the thing, how many of those extra hours are driving, stewing, possibly sleeping more, checking emails, checking social networking, sitting around depressed, etc.

If you do the math as honest as you can, 30 hours is probably generous. Meaning? If I don’t find any fulfillment at my job, then I spend the majority of my life doing something that has no tangible fulfillment. I wonder why you feel like crap.

My challenge to you, think. Think about those days that you drive home with the music a bit louder, a bit more pep in your step, maybe a slight dance on the ride…….and then start to unpack what it is about those days that leaves you feeling, well, a bit high. That’s fulfillment.

For those that don’t have these days, this suck. No getting around it. So, what are you going to do about it?