Anyone else hate working, no matter what you’re doing?

[whatnoooow]

I’m 38 and I’m hitting the horrific reality that I’ve probably got another 30 years of work to do.

No matter what industry I’ve worked in, as soon as I get about 2 years in to a role, I start to despise it and I can’t keep job hopping in to random industries. My CV will look like a patchwork quilt! The kicker is, I don’t even earn well!

Does anyone else feel like this?

Has anyone got out of this rut?

And is it just the money that would put you off care work if that was what you felt would be a more rewarding job? Could you take the pay cut, lead a simpler life and be happier 😊

Same! I’m nearly 50 and still feel like I’m still searching for the job for me. Changed to do my job with remote working at Christmas, cos I was sick of 20 years of commuting. I’m just as fed up working from home, not stressed now but just bored and lonely. I could happily fill my time with travel, books, museums and galleries, maybe volunteer in a primary school for a few hours a week. I did enjoy my career in my twenties but have had no interest in it for a long time now.

Yep. I’ve never had a profession, just jobs but even though some of them have been good jobs, I hate having to do them. I’m genuinely just inherently lazy and I’d love to not have to do anything.

@whatnoooow I work in financial services and I get it! I think once you hit the age where you've still got 30 years to go - it kind of hits you.

But you've got more working years ahead than behind you (sorry!) so why not think about what you would really love to do. Maybe even have a career coach session - it's a long time so it may be that you can find something more fulfilling.

Working isn't natural though is it? At least not in the sense we 'work' sat staring at a machine for hours on end, communicating with people we may never meet.
We were supposed to be hunter/gatherers, walking long distances with other members of our community finding berries or stalking a deer.
Your day started at sunrise and ended at sunset when you retreated to your warm cave and listened to older, wiser people tell stories until you fell asleep.
You knew the intricacies of nature as your life depended on it, you could recognise hundreds of flowers, insects, herbs, and animals. You felt part of the world you lived in and moved at nature's pace, when it was cold and miserable you stayed in the cave and rested. When the sun shone you were out enjoying the day.
I might have romanticised what would have been a very difficult life but Working now goes against everything my brain and body wants to do.....I hate it but I need the money (something else cave people didn't worry about!)

Yes, I hate working
My dream would be to run a non for profit animal sanctuary but even when I worked in a job role that was related too animals (vets) I did not make enough to be able to survive
I work to live and hate it

100% this

God Yes. I hate working full-time. Feel like there is very little work life balance. I work just so I can pay bills it seems

I’m 52 - I’ve had careers in two very different sectors and I’m now the CEO. It’s knackering, stressful, sometimes enjoyable. If I worked in the private sector I’d earn a ton more 🙄. Quite honestly I’m done. If I could hand my notice in tomorrow I would. There are soooo many other things I’d like to be doing. However I do feel like I’m staring down the countdown to finishing. If I was in my 30s I’d maybe be panicking a bit.

I am one of the very lucky few who genuinely love their job. Don't get me wrong, if I could afford to retire tomorrow and spend my time doing what I want to do, I would in a heartbeat. But whilst I have to work, I can at least enjoy it. It took me a very long time to get here: I'm 47 and have been in this role for 3 years, but I'm now in a place where I get to put my skills and interests to work within a sphere I care passionately about. I work part-time (0.8 FTE), mostly work from home with choice about when to go to the office, am comfortably paid (within the 3rd sector so never going to be a high earner) and work with a really great team. Unless things go catastrophically wrong, I hope to stay here until retirement.

I wonder if it’s an age thing? I’ve just turned 39 and have been feeling like this for a while. I actually am in the middle of retraining and I already hate it! I hate that a people centred job involves so much computer work. I hate working from home and I hate being in the office 🙈.

I too want an active job, I’d like to be a professional dancer but that ship has long sailed or a horse riding instructor but it doesn’t pay enough.

Or better yet, married to a billionaire and spend my days working out, riding my horses (that I don’t have but would if I was married to a billionaire) and walking my dog (actually I have 3). Preferably living somewhere hot so after all that, I could lie by the pool while someone else cleaned my house!

Yes.
I’m 58 though so I’m putting it down to that. I’ve just bloody had enough

i have been able to work part time for many years and it makes a difference to feel that l have time to other more interesting things

I hate wfh and I hate the office!

id love to be a midwife. Or even a maternity support worker, but those jobs are like gold dust. And I have no hospital based experience.

This is me except we don’t have a dog haha. SAHM for years, last child has just gone to school and I just can’t face going back to sitting at a laptop all day, dreading Mondays, being buried in emails, feeling anxiety. I’ve just got some freedom and I don’t want to lose it. Thankfully partner loves his job and earns really well and I want to financially contribute but it’s scary to take the leap into the workforce again. This thread isn’t giving me hope I’m going to enjoy it haha

I'm there , i know what you mean !!!
I work in a field i have always wanted to be in, i have nice colleagues/friends and dare i say it i'm good at my job but i am sick of working, totally had my fill.
I would be fulfilled walking my dogs ,keeping a nice home and cooking the odd tea.
I have zilch desire to climb any ladders and end of my shift is the best part of my day !

Same here. 3 years into current job. It’s killing me! But the thought of finding a new job and starting from scratch terrified me as well. What if I am jumping from the frying pan into the fire?

I am a well paid professional, on my 2nd profession. I would love to retire early, but years away from that being a realistic option.

I've worked in my career for 20+ years and earn well. But I'm realising I'm not going to set this sector aflame with intellectual brilliance and am at best, decidedly average. I'm coming to terms with as long as I do what I need to and get no complaints I can carry on. I don't know what else I would do if I quit and have no secret burning desires of my dream job.

I’ve felt like this ever since I started working at 17. Since I got my first ‘career’ type job when I left uni, the feeling has only intensified.

I remember being SO excited to start work, but I absolutely despise it.

I have switched jobs every couple of years. I’ve had better jobs and worse jobs, but I’ve never enjoyed working (even though very occasionally I will enjoy a project, kind of) and hate having my time taken up by it. Sadly I am trapped by a decent salary that I can’t imagine giving up to start all over again in a profession I may or may not like.

I also cannot for the life of me think of anything else I’d rather do. I’m just inherently quite lazy and would be happy to potter around baking, hiking, going to the gym, reading etc forever.

It is not the work itself that I usually resent, it is the environment: the politics, the pointless meetings and online trainings just so that HR can tick a box...

Thankfully I work part-time and mainly from home now.

I do some freelance stuff as well which I really enjoy, but I am bored senseless by my part-time office role and I hate being an employee.

I get bored very easily and must admit a new challenge would keep me entertained. I like a challenge, not just a job.

Yeah, I got out of it by starting my own business.

Today I didn't really feel like working so I made banoffee pie instead and just answered a few emails.

I feel the same. It all just seems so pointless. Emailing people, agreeing to things, negotiating with people. I’m 44 now and just had enough of slogging my way into work every day to deal with idiots. If it wasn’t for hybrid working after covid I don’t know how I would cope.

yep 56 and totally counting down luckily I am a contractoral home worker now and I don't miss going into the office one bit office politics etc drives me mad
In fact lots of things drive me mad particularly the unfairness that goes on and how they flig a willing horse as it were but I just shut up now and do a days work and log off at the end of the day I'm not interested in personal development plans courses upskilling learning opportunities etc etc I have one eye on the door next year I will have done 40 years and am so done with working can't wait to retire at 60 have loads of lovely things to fill my time enough is enough I try to let it all go over my head I have zero interest!!

I don’t see why you couldn’t change jobs every few years. Do what makes work more tolerable for you and don’t focus on how it looks on your cv. It can’t be bad to have a variety of work experience either. I also get bored with a job very easily and start looking for a change few years into a role. Preferably I would change every year!