Feeling deflated

[BippityBoppityFuck]

More of a WWYD.

I've been in my job for almost 6 months and I'm bored. I don't feel fulfilled. I completed a 3 year degree thinking I was on the right path.

I've always wanted to do something creative but I'm not good at art, singing, dancing etc. so I'm just not sure where to go. I'm not academically gifted either, I've always done average when it came to school/uni (I got an A, couple of B's and mainly C's in GCSE and my uni assignments were always around 60%)

The only things I love doing are cooking (can't work in food anymore due to medical reasons) and makeup. I'm really good at doing creative makeup on myself but not on other people.

I'm WFH today trying not to cry, I really hate the line of work I'm in, the company itself is fantastic.

Any advice please?

Well, work is a big part of most people lives. But most people also don't do a job that is totally fulfilling or their dream job - if your job pays for your lifestyle and allows you free time to enjoy things you do enjoy doing, like cooking or makeup, I'd see that as a win!

I'm an accountant - I can tell you it's not related to my degree and whilst I do enjoy it, it wasn't my dream job growing up (shocking I know!). It's not always the most fulfilling, sometimes it's frustrating and stressful, but it pays for me to do things in my free time that do bring me happiness. It pays for my holidays, hobbies, pets and treats etc. I see it as I work to live (the classic phrase), I work so that I can do everything else I want to in my own time. My DH is the same!

If you really hate the line of work then would an internal transfer be possible at all?

Start a YouTube or tiktok doing what you love

@Midnlghtrain thank you for your post, it's a good way to look at things and I actually feel a lot better x

@Treehuggingmutherfunkin I have considered this, I'm just nervous about having my face online!

Does the company have a marketing team or any in house designers? If you are doing well could you look at shadowing someone in a more creative role one afternoon a week to build your skill set? If you like the company this could be a move into a role more your vibe, or start laying the groundwork to move elsewhere

Can you describe what it is you don't like about the job? Maybe explain a bit more about the lack of fulfilment. Ideally with practical examples.

Something feels a bit wrong if WFH is bad. For me, it's really helpful. I can adapt how I work better for difficult days than I could in an office. Put on music, have a nice homemade lunch and other helpful things to keep me in good spirits

I'm not sure if there is any department like the ones you've mentioned. I work for an environmental consultancy. I just can't think of any role within the company that I'd like to do at the moment but, as I'm unsure of what I'd really like to do for work, I'm unsure of where to look at moving to

A lot of the job is admin work or just being at the desk but this was not set out in the job description. The more experienced folks go out/travel for work. I'm just very bored and I feel like I'm wasting my life doing so much admin.

We have to do a lot of presentations which I absolutely hate. WFH makes me miserable because I have nobody to talk to but it's quite expensive and time consuming to go to the office everyday, on top of that, the team at my office is tiny so if I were to go in everyday, I'd be by myself anyway as the others will be WFH. Everyday just feels like such a drag, I feel frustrated as soon as I wake up for work

@BippityBoppityFuck thanks. I have a better idea what you mean now. My experience of job descriptions like you've found, inaccurate because they describe the teams responsibilities not what's expected of the applicant. For my roles, they often have an unrealistic list of skills on top.

Your experience of WfH also fits with things I've heard about experiences of new hires in junior roles, feeling the lack of exposure to more experienced people to interact with. I'm not entirely sold on that, personally, because of my own experiences before WfH was a thing as well as different WfH experiences which haven't all been positive. I think company culture & investment in training also require examination. It's worth asking if it's the wrong kind of work or just not the best company to do this kind of work.

It shouldn't all be down to you, but I like to think about agency & how to have direct impact.

Have you tried trying to build relationships with other people in the team, enough to try & suggest meeting up in the office? A subtle way to do it is trying to set up 1-2-1 meetings, seeking help with something or other whether you need it or not. Then try slipping in non-work chat to build rapport. It's not something that comes naturally to me, so you're similar then maybe try to see it as a skill to practice.

Have you spoken with the team manager? About how you feel & what might help improve how you feel about the job.

If all else fails, maybe it's worth looking for a similar role elsewhere & if you feel less or no WfH would help then pre-interview or in actual interview ask about that to try and find somewhere that suits you better.

Hopefully something in there is helpful, I've done some jobs that felt terrible to be in so I know how it can affect you grinding through days