What's the biggest challenge of your job?

[AjasLipstick]

Mine is that there are long periods of time where I have nothing to do and nobody to talk to.

Also that it's in a lonely area and I get a bit freaked out sometimes. I work in an arts centre in rural Australia.

Mine is tight deadlines, high stakes and unreasonable client expectations.

(Solicitor, specifically dispute resolution)

Same as you Ajas. I work in a perfectly nice office but very quiet and lots of older people who never leave their desk. I’m quite social so it bothers me.

I also have lots of down time and get very bored. I had the same at my last job and they gave the impression in the interview that this was very fast paced and busy- not so.

How do you fill your down time?

Having to make tough decisions that I know are going to affect people's financial wellbeing and peace of mind.

The general public, God luv’em. I work in a library but it seems that more and more now we are an extension to social services/citizens’ advice /the job centre. The challenge is often deciding how much help we can reasonably give someone who, for example, wants to apply for universal credit or write a CV or photocopy a sheaf of hospital letters on the so-called ‘self service’ copiers and PCs. I love my job really.

Time management - i'm self employed and work from home, so during the summer holidays it can be particularly challenging to get everything done around squabbling kids.

Impossible deadlines which I repeatedly hit with no recognition, high workload and working with people who do things that make others miserable.

Oh loads. Being a woman in a heavily male dominated environment. Being in a fairly senior role as a woman in a male dominated environment. Being part time and making sure I'm taken seriously. The men I work with on the whole are fantastic but I have to pull them up occasionally on unknowing casual sexism.
The role itself is mentally challenging but I love it.

Self employed, so finding a balance between work and down time. Work is in my studio (formerly the spare room) so I have to stop myself going in there every day sometimes, if I'm busy. I alter wedding dresses, and turning them inside out and making the first cut is always a bit of a "deep breath" moment too.

Cut backs which leads to staff shortages and grumpy colleagues, some with bad attitudes ('That's beneath/ above my paid grade, so I wont do it' ).

Customers who start a sentence with 'I'm not having a go at you love, but...'

Complexity and bureaucracy

I teach and find the hardest thing of all has been letting go. Not of the children specifically, because it's the nature of it and I'm alright at the end of term etc, but letting go when there've been issues.

One child in particular made some truly harrowing disclosures after being with us for some time. Obviously we followed protocol and reported it in every way possible and handled it as well as we possibly could, but the thing I found hardest of all was letting go of that; having to simply carry on in class and hear nothing back (which, I know, is totally the right thing) and just get on with it.

I love my job, but I don't think I'll ever become immune to that side of it. Children are so little, so vulnerable, and so truthfully lovely that any of them coming in and telling me that an adult showed them unkindness just makes me terribly sad.

Being polite to my manager…

At the moment, motivation.

retaining sufficient self esteem to get out of bed in the morning....

My CEO- who I work directly to.

My manager, who leans on me far too much, asks my advice in everything. She is the most negative person I know and it's really dragging me down.

I plan on leaving soon.

Not getting physically assaulted! I work in Children's social care with young people with challenging behaviours and disabilities.

Being a woman in a male environment. Not being heard or having my opinions valued.

Getting everything I’m expected to do done in time and still to a high enough standard.

The general public! Long hours, shift work, dangerous situations. Still love my job though!

I work in a small team which really needs certain levels of competence which sadly several of my colleagues don’t have. This means they are stressed about not doing their jobs properly and I’m stressed because I know it should be done to a higher level. Our work environment suffers from this and we can’t teach each other/improve because we’re not bouncing ideas of each other at the same level. Apart from that there are some behavioural issues and tension between group members ...

Dogs

My co-workers.

The biggest every day/routine challenge is seeing women in early labour and trying to manage their expectations. Normally they are very happy to go home but it is demoralising for them. You get at least one couple a day who don't want any of the options on offer and just really really don't believe what you are saying.

Obviously there is more tragic stuff to occasionally deal with but that isn't a challenge in the same way.

Also trying to get people round to labour ward for epidural when the midwife in charge is being obstructive about it. Hugely frustrating.

Also motivation. Statutory sector but working from home at the moment (due to "cost savings" so not enough office space!) and no manager due to restructures. It's depressing when no one notices if you are working or not. I feel as though I've fallen down a hole.