On Monday morning I came across this
Most people approach their work in one of three ways: as a job, a career, or a calling.
- If you see your work as a job, you do it only for the money, you look at the clock frequently while dreaming about the weekend ahead, and you probably pursue hobbies, which satisfy your effectance needs more thoroughly than does your work.
- If you see your work as a career, you have larger goals of advancement, promotion, and prestige.
- If you see your work as a calling, however, you find your work intrinsically fulfilling you are not doing it to achieve something else. You see your work as contributing to the greater good or as playing a role in some larger enterprise the worth of which seems obvious to you. You have frequent experiences of flow during the work day, and you neither look forward to “quitting time” nor feel the desire to shout, “Thank God it’s Friday!” You would continue to work, perhaps even without pay, if you suddenly became very wealthy.
Lately, I am feeling that I also belong to a tribe of millions who go to office, swipe their attendance card, open their email, answer new mails, wait for more emails, speak to a couple of customers, same issues and no resolution in sight, a couple of coffee breaks followed by lunch, a couple of more email exchanges, a couple of more coffee breaks with some extended gossip sessions and then clock tells me, it is time to leave. Card swipe and I head back towards home, doing things which help me rejuvenate so that I am prepared to go through the same monotonous grinding cycle next day.
If the number of emails received is less, then I feel neglected. More the number of meetings I attend, more I feel burdened with work. I feel like I am a replaceable cog which can be replaced on the whims and fancies of someone sitting above me. Okay, maybe I am wrong about firing part, but the mere thought of being a cog is giving me enough heartache.
The only consolation is that I am not alone. Last week I got an opportunity to travel in Metro during office hours. Every face was communicating the same signs of monotonous cubicle life. If one does not consider the features, and tries to differentiate people on the basis of expressions on faces, he will fail miserably.
I am trying to break this cycle by pursuing various things - reading, running, blogging, doodling etc. But getting up every morning and going to office is one thing which I do not want to do. It is a big energy sapping moment. It drains me out emotionally more than physically.
People suggest changing job might help. I am not sure. For sometime it will be a motivation to get up and go to office but sooner or later I will be caught in the boring spiral of cubicle life.
But problem is I do not even know where my calling lies., what will satisfy my heart and mind both. I do not have any passion for which I will leave my cubicle comfort and take a plunge. There are a couple of business ideas I have been sleeping for sometime but so far they have remained ideas and nothing more. Not acting is my failure. Maybe this cubicle comfort is too cozy to leave and I am letting my life pass by.
Maybe someday, it will happen. Till then, I will try to cope up with cubicle comfort and try finding my calling or giving up everything to start something.
