They've recruited me but there isn't enough work

[miserablybored]

I started a new job a few months ago... they have quite clearly over-recruited and there just isn't enough work to do.

I work in a niche role (sorry, I know that phrase is hated on here, but it's true!) and while the job isn't local, it's nearer than any other on the market. I spend over two hours a day commuting.

I'm being paid very well, and I get a generous package on top of this. But there's nothing to do! As an example, I'm going to spend tomorrow rearranging paper files. They're paying me a high salary for this job.

I ask for work, and I'm given tiny tasks that take an hour or so. My brain is rotting. I thrive on being super busy.

How can I make this better?!

Can you write a list of pieces you’d like to do and steps involved?

Or busy yourself by writing a book?

The second sort of a joke but not really.

Otherwise you might need to wait for it to get busier (are they pitching for business that might come in?) or look for another role.

How can you use that time for personal development and career advancement? I once had a job like that (though it wasn’t super high paid). I spent my time writing articles from previous work that I’d wanted to publish and preparing applications to PhD programmes. I’d die for that sort of free time these days.

This happened to me. I had some success in networking as much as possible and starting projects I felt would be useful.
What does your line manager say?
I spent a fair amount of time training myself and training others as well as joining work related forums and stuff.
However a years on and I ended up openly reading the newspaper at work, got a bit depressed and thankfully got made redundant.

Can you be blunt with your manager? Is it a role where you could provide training? Is there research for future projects to be done?

Does anyone remember a similar thread where a woman poster had to stay at work with absolutely nothing to do? I think she was on an army base.

OP is there any training you could do that would help you when things get busier?

Make the most of the spare brain time and apply for other jobs ...enjoy the money you are earning because people in very low paid jobs would do anything to be in your position!! I work in a care home as a manager and feel so bad about the carer who had to borrow money from me to pay for a prescription for a nasty abscess she had !! Yes only £9 but she wasn’t going to get her medication because she was so skint after rent and bills working 52 hours a week !!

Create your own work. I've written handbooks and policy and rejigged letters and reorganised things.

This happened to me, albeit not in a niche job, and I found work to do... Saw a hole in their business structure, filled it by doing project work, and effectively ended up making my own job. Any potential for you to do that?

I feel your pain. I worked somewhere where I started off with monthly reporting in a fairly non busy role and they switched to quarterly reporting.
I had nothing to do for 2.5 months, then 2 weeks of gathering data s as ms analysing then back to nothing for 2.5 months.
I tried to do anything and everything else I could but I couldn’t make it last.
I had to leave as it was soul destroying.

I get it, it's soul destroying. I work with another 2 people and I often find I'm dragging the tasks out as I've got nothing left to browse at on the internet and there's nothing else for me to do. Currently doing a course through work which will hopefully enable me to get a better job afterwards and takes some time up. Before this I worked in a very busy environment and I miss that workload, the days flew over but it wasn't a nice place to work and got a lot of abuse from patients. I'm getting paid more to do a lot less.

This was me when I worked in the NHS.

I was on a band 7 salary with naff all to do...I even did some cleaning to keep busy. There were a whole bunch of us, some people seriously perfected the art of making a 30 minute piece of work last all day.

It was totally demoralising and depressing, I did literally feel like my brain was slowing right down.

I lasted 2 years before leaving.

I've never been in a role where I've been given enough work. I find it.

Process improvement
Promoting team and work you do /can do
Get feedback from other teams
Create and deliver bespoke functional or development training programmes
Get invited to as many interesting meetings or workshops that you can
Find out about the in flight and in the pipeline projects and offer your services for free (check with manager and tell them you can handle the workload while gaining valuable experience for the team)
Network
Find a mentor
The list is endless...

Tell people what skills you have and that you would be happy to help them if they needed it.

Why don’t you do a Master’s degree?

This was me a few months ago. I love to be pressured and busy but instead I was paid a lot of money to stare out of the window. I had around an hour of actual work to do a day. Once I had nothing for a straight week.

I quit and haven’t looked back.

It was SO demoralising and actually made me feel depressed.

Oddly enough, I’m much better since leaving!

What conversation have you had with your line manager about your objectives? What are his/her objectives and can you help with those?

HollowTalk I remember that thread

How I envy you OP!
Come work in education you will never have an idle minute again !

Professional development?
Distance learning course?
Failing that... work at home

If it's a well paid niche role, are they imagining that you'll create work by going after new business, streamlining and improving processes and innovating/developing the role? Sorry, difficult to be specific without knowing what the job is but for example, years ago as a team SENCo I started off with very little work because they'd never had one before and had low expectations. I did a few things:
Parent consultations, 1-1 teacher consultations to work out what was missing and how things could be improved.
Virtually "following" a child to see if our paper system was comprehensive, accessible and easy to use.
Arranging networking meetings with fellow professionals. Etc etc.
The point is, develop your role and even if, in the end you call it a day, you'll have developed yourself professionally and built a great profile for yourself with people who might be able to help you further in.

Start job hunting tomorrow. It won't change.

That was me in my last job. I started off fine but streamlined a lot of stuff and in doing so, massively reduced my own workload. It transpired that my predecessor left because he felt like nobody knew what he did, and I quickly felt the same. I ended up finding new projects and helping out people in other departments but ultimately left because I had no direction from anyone above me because nobody understood my role.

It really got me down. I like being busy.

@coffee I'm also with this nhs and I know some other depts which are the same, it's shocking how much money they're wasting. I mentioned to my manager and was told there would be a lot more work brought in, that was months ago, there's been a few new jobs but nothing that takes longer than an hour max. Older colleague has drilled into manager that the service is so busy, baffles me why.

Have you been brought in in anticipation of new work coming in? It's early in the new year - it doesn't seem unlikely that more work might be coming down the line. If you've only been there a couple of months could it be that getting you up to speed followed by the festive period was just quite quiet.

Is it the sort of role where you are expected to generate work? Could you be out networking and bringing in business on your own?