Are You Underemployed?

Guest Post by Mimi Meredith

Are you underemployed? No. You’re not. You’re employed.

I don’t mean to say, be grateful for any job because so many other people have none. I don’t want you to justify your experience in life by comparing yourself to others and living the “it could be so much worse” mentality. There’s no power or joy in that kind of thinking.

Instead, how about this. How about considering that where you are is where you are. Maybe not “where you’re meant to be” because, hello, who knows where you’re really supposed to be? Are you God? Just because something feels right doesn’t mean it is right. It just might be more comfortable or more in line with your expectations.

Wherever you are I can guarantee you this, there is something to be learned and there is something good to be done there.

If you go around thinking a job is beneath you or that you are underemployed, not only will you lose the chance to gain what you can from the experience, but you will insult all those around you.

In my second week of Life on the Lot, I made myself sit patiently and listen to understand (woo hoo…look who listens to her own advice!) a man whose training style I find incredibly condescending. I stilled my critical voice and realized, it’s just his style. He isn’t demeaning unless I allow myself to feel demeaned. None of it’s about me nor meant to be taken personally. This guy has been in the business for years. He has a protocol to follow that has been proven successful and I decided if I could stop thinking about how I’d improve his protocol long enough to simply follow it, maybe I’d be successful to. This was incredibly difficult for me, but I did it. (Applause!)

Guess what? It worked! I listened. I understood. I honored his experience and I learned something that I put into practice with immediate success.

I have two favorite quotes when it comes to work…

Don’t expect honor from the work you do; bring honor to it.

and

I never had a job I loved, but I’ve never failed to find love in every job I’ve had.

That last quote is a paraphrase of a comment I read by William P. Young who wrote The Shack. He has worked as everything from a janitor to a hotel desk clerk.

I find much more wisdom in those statements than I do in the fortune that was in my cookie when my daughter and I went out to celebrate my second car sale.

That’s it in the photo…

“Avoid unchallenging occupations. They waste your talents.”

Your talents…your goodness…your love. None of it’s yours to begin with. So share them all abundantly. Wherever you are.

HEARTSPOKEN’S NOTE: For anyone who is employed, especially in this economy, your connection with your work can impact your happiness and all other aspects of your life. Mimi herself, in an effort to bolster family cash flow, once started a job as a car sales person. Her reflections on this journey can teach us all a great deal about the importance of attitude in any situation. If you’re feeling unappreciated, or that you’re working in a job that is not worthy of your skills and talents, try not to let a bad attitude ruin any chance you have at being content and learning what you should from the experience. CONNECT with the good in your situation and, as Mimi herself believes and practices: Let the Goodness Grow!

Share your own struggles and successes with your attitude about work. Leave a comment below or join the conversation at my Facebook Page.

 

About Mimi Meredith:

Mimi has spent most of her career in public relations, development, and corporate communication. Or, as she likes to describe it–helping people to be better understood and to be more understanding. Her unique ability to identify communication gaps with her “gloriously blunt,” but warm manner is matched by her intuitive ability to bridge those gaps. She is an author, speaker, and workshop leader. She is also a genuine, warm person who works diligently to make her corner of the world a better place.