How To Achieve World Peace by Firing Yourself

All throughout my career I've overheard numerous comments from colleagues relating to disdain and inconvenience relating to their job. People choose to whine, bitch, complain about the little details, because that's the easy way out rather than focusing on doing what they were hired to do to begin with. The phrase, "if you don't like your job....quit" is nothing further from the truth. That is exactly what I did in the summer of 2004.

I realize that was a very dumb move. I can't help but ponder had I decided to stay and suck it up, would I even still be there today? The answer to that would most likely have been 'no.' My last employer recently undergone major staff cuts and did not exclude employees that have been there for fifteen or more years. I was just shy of my four year anniversary with the company.

To clarify, it wasn't my actual job, the initial role I was hired for, that I had issues with. In fact, I loved everything about it, and I thoroughly enjoyed working in the department I was in. It wasn't until the last couple months of my employment I was approached by HR stating they had to eliminate my position due to consolidation and cost-cutting measures. Rather than let me go entirely, they offered me another position without a decrease in pay. To most people, they would consider this a sweet deal, and would accept. Initially, I accepted. Then went home later in the day still bothered by it all and wondering what the future holds for me in my "new position." I contemplated my potential happiness, as I was quite comfortable where I was before. For me, I have to be content with my role in order to project my willingness. Having said that, that is part of the reason why I have been in the job market for as long as I have. I am not a "second best" kind of girl, and I do not apply to just any job posting with any 'ol company just because they're hiring. I digress.

In the end, I decided that taking on the new role would not be in my best interest, and it certainly wasn't in the company's best interests. My previous employer have been really good to me and I have a huge amount of respect for them. I figured I'd do them the favor and just leave, because my willingness would be nowhere the capacity it was prior to the recent change. The change consisted a lesser amount of work, a different crowd, and direct face-to-face contact with the public eight hours a day, in addition to the phone. Granted, I can always be the innovator by conjuring and developing avant-garde Excel spreadsheets using data that no one really cares about, but I still have to deal with the same crowd. To me, having good chemistry is essential for a good employee morale. As far as customer contact, I love to be kickin' it old school by chatting with clients over the phone, but I can't do that ALL day. I need the diversity in my life for me to be the well-esteemed colleague that most employers would fundamentally desire.

In the years that followed, I've had in-between gigs, but nothing compared to my previous gig. They were not stable, and two of the jobs I was let go just shy of my 90 day "trial period." I always had the favorite employer in the back of my mind, wondering if I should have stayed or not. Once again, I digress.

Everywhere I go and everything I hear, there always seems to be someone that is ultimately unhappy in their job and have no problems showing it. This results to lackluster customer service. Or no customer service. Let's take it a step further and factor any kind of account management into the equation. Bank account representatives certainly come to mind.

My husband is a Controller for a highly reputable lighting refinishing company that generates millions of dollars a year. He returns home from work some days in an irascible mood, and I can't seem to get a word in edgewise. When he finally calms down, he begins to talk about his day: the dealings with oversea transactions and wire transfers, the traffic, and other nonsense protocols. Then I hear him say, "I've put in a call to my account rep at LaSalle Bank. I've been trying to get a hold of her the last few days. You would think a bank that handles a multi-million dollar account would be a bit more fucking compassionate." That is a third of what he is so agitated about some days. Of course, I'm agitated because he's agitated. Then I thought....is this something my husband and I should be so aggravated over? Should we really be that pissed over an employee's reluctance to do his/her job?

Back in the day when I used to frequent the topflight department stores, I was so wound up in my own little world that I hardly noticed anyone else in my surroundings (unless they were attractive). When a sales associate would say, "Hi, how are you today?" I was aghast, but it sure put me in a good mood (provided they don't overdo their sales pitch). I briefly thought someone actually cared about my presence because I'm a potential buyer. My good mood mixed with their compassion results in a "I'm doing great, thank you!" type dialogue. Essentially I will feel very confident approaching that salesperson with any questions I may have.

That doesn't happen much anymore, which explains my nonplused demeanor. When a sales clerk says hello, that usually implies they are content in their job and thoroughly enjoy what they do. Unfortunately, it has become disturbingly common for employees to be rude to the general public. I realize this works both ways, but in my husband's case, he had a general inquiry, and there was no reason why his Account Rep wouldn't return his call in a timely fashion. It seems as though the higher the unemployment index rate, the ruder employees become.

Sadly, we live in a very angry world right now. It's disturbing to turn on the TV to find bloody faces in London. As of this writing, the news is solely focused on the shooting in Binghamton, NY . Sure, I have the option of turning off the TV, but I still have to go out to the local grocery store and find grumpy cashiers. I still have to call my wireless provider and go through an asinine automated system and hold for five minutes just to get a cranky human that goes strictly by script. I still have to deal with the newspaper carrier that absolutely refuses to deliver the right paper (if I even get a paper at all, some days). These are just some of the examples that there are ways to make our world a less angry place if people would just focus on doing what they were hired to do, and competency helps. From my perspective, if folks didn't want that job to begin with, they shouldn't have interviewed for that role.

Much of my outlook stems from a very black-and-white perspective. There are no shades of gray when it comes to one's employment. Quitting a job is not the best option right now, and I understand that. That doesn't mean these lucky employed folks of today are entitled to take out their acrimony onto the rest of the general public. No matter what the circumstances are, no matter the job situation is, people need to learn to suck it up and perform their job right. And smile. Smiling doesn't kill anyone last I heard. A smile goes a very long way. In this day and age, a lot more smiling would certainly be welcomed; to lift a mood; to let someone know that hey, you actually care, or at least pretend to care. Because if you don't care, obviously there are some issues that lie within your conscious. 

The moral of this story is...if you don't like your job, then truly QUIT, and stop letting innocent bystanders know how miserable your life has become. Otherwise, appreciate the job that you have and make the BEST of it. I knew I couldn't. It is this reason I decided to quit from my most beloved employer. It would have done them no justice by having me stay with them in my new role.