I know a thing or two about the 9 to 5 (or 9 to 7 or 6 to 6 depending what industry you’re in). Unless you’re a trust fund baby, most likely you’re going to need a full-time gig to support yourself. Heck, you might even need that part-time job just to float by. As for myself, I currently hold a full-time gig. However, people like Steve Pavlina (one of the most productive people on this planet) or Robert Kiyosaki (author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad) say that it’s just a waste of time. Hmm, don’t they have a full-time job? I mean surely they must’ve had one to begin with. Actually, they definitely did. For instance, Robert Kiyosaki worked at Xerox as a salesman. However, these two men realized not too long after that having a typical stint as an employee didn’t give them the freedom to do whatever they wanted with their lives. Now, they are doing what they love and making lots and lots of money while at it…however, the underlying value to their position in life is that they are doing something that they love. They are passionate in whatever work they produce. In actuality, they turned their 9 to 5 to a 24-hour, eating, breathing, living work-a-thon. Meaning, the thing that produces their income has become an inherent part of their lives that it’s not even work anymore. It’s their life. So what does this mean for the rest of us? It means that we all need to find something we really, really like doing or better yet, something we’re passionate about. Time flies when you’re having fun so why not make a good living from it as well?
However, many people have not come to that point where what they are doing to make ends meet is actually the thing that they are passionate about. In fact, many people are stuck doing something that is far removed from what they truly desire. In these situations, you have to truly think about what makes you the happiest and what is your strength as an individual. And you have to ask yourself, does your current job reflect you as an individual where your skills and talent may be exposed? If yes, then you’re on the right path. If no, then it’s time to change your thoughts. Then there are the people that are doing something they know that’s not right for them but is just a means to get to what they want. For example, there is the musician that takes on waiting tables to pay the rent or aspiring writer that works as someone’s assistant getting coffee and the like. As long as you know that your current situation is just a means to get closer to the next level and that you actively work on your own stuff during the off-hours, then you too are on the right path. But hey maybe you’re happy where you are and that being an assistant (aka someone’s bitch) is truly your calling in life. You’re content and have reached complacency…hey I’m not one to judge. But for the ones who are seeking something more meaningful in their life in terms of work and career, it is ever so possible! Just change your thoughts. Come to the realization that you don’t need to be stuck in a dead-end job for the rest of your days. You can actually venture out and start doing something that’s more in tune with your desire. Oh, does it sound scary? To many people, it is scary. It’s because the system has conditioned the masses to depend on the paycheck. So moving on and finding something new becomes too much of a risk and less of that freedom you seek. Well how much do you want that change that will improve the quality of your life?
The good news is that it starts with your thoughts. Once you have a change in mind about what you do then you are compelled to find the ways towards the new decision. In the meantime, be grateful for your current job. It feeds you, houses you, pays off your loans. So you can’t hate on it a hundred percent. See, I have the goals and ambition to become a full-time writer. Yet, I’m so grateful for having my current job. It sustains me for now, and I happen to focus on the positive aspects of it–great coworkers, interesting projects, internet-based work. Yes, I’m working for someone that’s not myself, but with diligence I’m confident my desire to work on my own schedule will come in its own time. Remember, always do your best no matter what the job is because then you’re living by the golden rule. Whatever you give out, you will get back by ten-fold or something like so.
Now it’s time for my anecdote. I was hanging out with a good friend of mine the other night. He called me out of the blue (actually I’ve been thinking about him so I brought him into my awareness) and wanted to grab dinner. So he picked me up and we went to one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants in Silverlake, Los Angeles…a very hipster place (so hipster, the restaurant doesn’t even have a name). Anyway we were catching up and he brought up how the last time we saw each other, he was complaining about his job. My friend works as a production assistant on the Scrubs set…and he’s definitely on the low end of the totem pole. He was having issues with his higher-up and the rigorous experience that comes with working in TV production. Well, he told me one day he just had it. That he was sick and tired of being all frustrated about the situation that instead he began to just laugh it off. Yeah he’d just laugh at everything that came pounding on his psyche and rather, he just saw everything not so serious anymore. It was his epiphany. Now you’re thinking that probably this guy also came to the realization that this job isn’t fit for him. Not necessarily. However, as his thoughts and his mood changed, his experience at the job changed as well. His boss started being nice to him. The work seemed more enjoyable. He even won a company raffle, winning 2 plane tickets to Aruba or something. Yeah talk about the Law of Attraction. But in the midst of all this, he started meeting people over at Disney or ABC…people on the corporate side of TV. They took note of him and really dug him as an individual. They even mentioned that he could transition into the corporate side and that they would help him with that. Yeah I’m talking about the VP of Business Affairs over at Disney was talking to him. Heck yeah! So what I’m trying to point out here is that since he changed his thoughts and mood, his work actually changed for him. Not only that, different opportunities came to him, which perhaps means that his true desire is coming to light. Anyway, even if you don’t know what your true desire may be, just being positive will bring more positive situations that make you happy. Alas, happiness and success go hand in hand.
“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.”
