To love working?

[qualitygirl]

Anyone else? Looking for my tribe? I love my job, love being busy, the pressure but then the success. Solving problems, working on great projects etc etc. Do you love your job and enjoy going to work? I am genuinely excited by my job every day!! I'm on my lunch break right now and just thought I'd ask this off the back of the "AIBU- to hate working!" Thread!

I used to love my job but haven't for a while. I am an academic and everyone else around me loves it, but after fifteen years, am ready for a new challenge. What do you all do?

I’m a teacher in a special school. It’s not for everyone, but I really love it. I also love being back in the workplace after being a stay at home mum for a couple of years.

Can I ask, how long you have been working and if you work fulltime? Does the loving your job wear off if you are 50 and have always worked fulltime, or if you have a growing family and little downtime at home from your fulltime job?

It is easy to love your job if you have good energy, a 4 day week, plenty of free time and no young dcs.

I used to love my job, until I had children. I kept working fulltime. I had very little time to rest at home as was always so busy with dcs, housework, after a full day at work.

I am starting to love work again, now that dcs are older and I have some downtime at home. Hoping to go on a 4 day week soon, so as not to be rushing to do errands around the 5 days at work.

@user1471554720 I have been working for 17 years, full time and yes I have two primary aged dc. I am also studying. My time is precious and I make the most of everything. My hours are good though. I work 7-3! So I do have a good few hours in the evenings.

It's OK to love your job.

Mostly people who do don't have much else to love!

I love working. I just no longer love my job.

@Daphnise not really I have plenty to love...my family...my garden (I grow veg and herbs), I go sea swimming with a group of lovely ladies every weekend, running, yoga. To name but a few.

DH and I did a survey for the DWP about 8 years ago, and a lady came to the house with a clipboard and asked us lots of questions about all sorts of things. And one section of them was about working patterns/hours and included job satisfaction. And we both rated our jobs as being 10/10. And she looked up from her clipboard and said that she’d never met a couple who said that before 🤣 I’m a teacher, there are things I hate about it, but I never dread going to work and I am never EVER bored. Kids are brilliant and hilarious and I wouldn’t change it for the world. DH has managed to make his passion into a really well paid and interesting career, with an excellent pension and has been promoted into a job that really plays into his strengths. It has its challenges, but again incredibly rewarding. We’ve felt incredibly lucky over the last year to both have jobs which are sociable, secure and public sector. It’s really helped break up the COVID monotony because we’ve both had loads of human contact with other people rather than being stuck at home.

@user1471554720

Can I ask, how long you have been working and if you work fulltime? Does the loving your job wear off if you are 50 and have always worked fulltime, or if you have a growing family and little downtime at home from your fulltime job?

It is easy to love your job if you have good energy, a 4 day week, plenty of free time and no young dcs.

I used to love my job, until I had children. I kept working fulltime. I had very little time to rest at home as was always so busy with dcs, housework, after a full day at work.

I am starting to love work again, now that dcs are older and I have some downtime at home. Hoping to go on a 4 day week soon, so as not to be rushing to do errands around the 5 days at work.

I actually found that I liked working more after I had my first child - not because it 'gave me a break' - I find it annoying when people say that - but because I valued feeling like I had an identity and headspace outside of being a mother. I also always struggle a lot more, mentally, if I'm under-busy rather than over-busy, which is part of why the structure is so important to me: if I won the lottery I wouldn't carry on doing my job, but I would fill my time with lots of work-like activities (like charitable work) as nothing makes me more miserable than lots of time with nothing to fill it stretching before me. Unsurprisingly I've struggled in lockdown!

@Daphnise - ouch! That’s not true. I have PLENTY to love. Loads of children, partner, family, friends, hobbies.

The job satisfaction is making me respect and like myself more, too.

@Hardbackwriter I'm very similar. If anything I appreciate work more now that I have DC and I'm more focused, efficient and driven, even though I don't have much downtime. I volunteer, study and pursue my hobbies on top of work and DC. I'm just at my best when I'm nicely stretched and achieving. I have a lot of energy and if it's not channelled productively it gets channelled negatively. I enjoy downtime when I get it, but I'd go mad as well as rot "pottering". I don't really ever intend to fully retire, although I plan to downscale and go self-employed alongside volunteering/studying.

Also, fuck off @Daphnise. I love lots of things. I love learning, writing, running, travelling, my DCs, my DH, and many other things as well as my job. I have a very rich life and feel very fortunate.

@Daphnise

It's OK to love your job.

Mostly people who do don't have much else to love!

That's rather an assumption.

On the whole I've loved working. I spent a couple of years not working at one point and I hated it.

@Daphnise

It's OK to love your job.

Mostly people who do don't have much else to love!

What a load of rubbish.

I bloody love my job but I also love a whole load of other things in my life.

It is easy to love your job if you have good energy, a 4 day week, plenty of free time and no young dcs.

I've loved every job I've had. I've worked full time since I left university ( apart from 7 months maternity leave)
I have a 6 year old and still work full time.

@Daphnise

It's OK to love your job.

Mostly people who do don't have much else to love!

Obviously just stirring rubbish.

@Daphnise what is it you think you have to love that others don’t? Husband, children, parents, friends? If that’s the case, I must say, your family&friends are SO lucky to have you; you sound absolutely amazing and not like a sad drain at all

Another person here who LOVES their job, very lucky husband, children and wider family very supportive of it

I absolutely love my job. From 8:45-3 I’m having a great time! It’s all the other shit that comes with it, the hours of unpaid paperwork and marking. But tbh I like that too. It’s a massive part of my life and I’m really looking forward to seeing my class on Monday!

@qualitygirl
Sea swimming- how lovely.
I agree. I love my job but Also my family , my home, gardening, good food ( and drink) walking etc.
I think the more you love, well the 'more' you have to love.

I absolutely love my job.
Got burnt out in the NHS trying to do a very high pressure specialist role. After years in the “love:hate” relationship with it, 2 years ago decided that it was time to leave. I was heartbroken.
I then decided to try independent midwifery and it has been a very, very steep learning curve but now I love midwifery again and my passion is back. I have time for my clients, I support clients with really specialist issues and complex conditions, or those facing loss, as well as those enjoying straightforward pregnancy who birth their babies at home.
It is exhausting and wonderful. Very demanding emotionally, intellectually and physically.
My only question now is why didn’t I make the move earlier.

I found that working full time was fine wirh one child. I had 2, with a 2 year age gap and kept working fulltime. I fell out of love with my job because I was always busy and tired. When I was not at work I was doing chores at home while dealing with dcs. I couldn't socialise or meet friends and had no tine or energy to exercise. Now that they are tweens and I am nearly 50, I feel better again. I was only off on 2 maternity leaves and one month unemployed ever.

Very much. 2 x part time jobs. Love both.