[cardguy]

I enjoy my job. And I am friendly with the people I work with.

Yet...

I fucking hate work.

I despise every hour I am there. It is an hour closer to death - and an hour not spent on something else I would rather be doing.

I am the happiest person I know. But I always get mild depression at the end of each weekend.

So - I am just wondering. Does anyone else here feel the same about having to work for a living? I know I have no choice and all that. But - it seems I cannot relate to alot of people who bang on about how much they love their jobs. And how empty their days are without having eight hours of it filled up with somebody else's demands.

To me they are fucking losers who have developed a form of Stockholm Syndrome.

I spent a few years at university (and after) doing sweet fuck all. The best years of my life. Just waking up and deciding what I want to do that day. Or deciding to spend a couple of months working on little projects that caught my eye.

If I hadn't seen such riches, I could live with being poor.

Entering the world of work after a few years 'outside the system' was a real eye-opener.

And nine years later - I still can't get over how much I hate having to work.

Be honest - how many others feel the same way?

[Brodiaga]

I feel the same way, even worse. I don't like most of the people I work with, so I try to minimize communication with them. Why don't I find a better job? Tried that before, and this job is better than some of my previous jobs, at least I don't hate it most of the time. The problem is not a particular company or boss, but the fact that I'm a wage slave and, realistically, will have continue living my life this way.

[Teedub]

I don't despise working, but I've never held down a job for longer than a year at a time. I always find little projects to keep me going financially. I'm currently in the process of of ensuring I never work in an office, or anywhere but my own study, ever again. Freelancing (yes, working on something for someone - but not under their employment technically) and affiliate marketing are making this possible for me.

My last office job was the final straw for me. I realized I didn't want to live in Britain anymore, and I am working my arse off to become financially secure but location independent. I love the notion of being a bit of a nomad and constantly moving about.

[cardguy]

I like my job.

That isn't the problem. It is just the feeling of being trapped in a system where most of the rest of your life is already mapped out for you.

Fuck I hate work.

To me it is like having cancer. It just totally dominates my life. I am either getting ready for work, at work, recovering from work (it takes me a few hours to fully chill out). Rushing to be (when I am not even tired) so that I get enough sleep for the next day at work. Or spending my weekends clock watching and counting down the hours to when I am back at work.

It is hard for me since - ideally - I would go to sleep at 6 in the morning (my body clock is weird). So - I am always having to restrain my impulses in order that I am not wiped out at work.

Fuck I hate work.

I will never fall in love again. But - to me - as much as I can roll out my MGTOW reasons for doing so. It is mostly down to having to work for a living. It is like the shape of your life gets tightly folded up so that you cannot expand, explore, improvise, travel and be spontaneous.

And without that mindset - it is impossible for me to love. I think I am one of those people who is more prone to 'holiday romances' than the usual romance bullshit that people dance through. For instance - the idea of 'falling in love' with somebody you work with is just insane to me.

But that is a whole other thing.

I just miss being able to wake up and do funny shit. Like getting drunk in the afternoon. Spending the day hanging out with friends. Or just trawling through bookshops. Or just staying up all night listening to music which I have suddenly developed a passion for - that day...

One thing I liked to do (before entering the world of work) was putting aside a few weeks to read the complete works of various writers and philosophers who caught my eye.

And it is hard to have the stamina to do such projects - when your mood and interests is continually shaped by work. I just don't have the intellectual stamina I once had to pursue projects which could often be a bit dull (and very time consuming).

I am not complaining. Since I understand how the economic system works. But I just wish people would be honest about their feelings. The problem isn't my job. The problem is having to sign your life over to somebody else's schedule.

Sigh...

[cardguy]

For me - entering the world of work is like being diagnosed with cancer.

Suddenly - every second of the rest of my life - is shaped by that knowledge. At a stroke you have to re-evaluate all your previous goals and dreams.

Since most of them are no longer viable.

It rots the soul as well. I work with a woman who hates work as much as me. But luckily for her - she is six months from retirement.

But you can see the agony in her eyes. And she is pretty fucking crazy. She is going stir crazy from being in the same job for so long.

Work is bad for your mental health.

[Teedub]

I know exactly what you mean about the sleeping thing. I love being awake at about 2-4 in the morning, knowing most other people are asleep, whilst I'm awake. I think there's something comforting in the fact that nobody is going to ring you, you don't have to do anything. It's completely peaceful at that time in the morning.

Why don't you figure out a way to leave work, in the capacity you are currently working, for good?

[MidniteSpecial]

I like going into work. Everyday I'm doing something different and never stay in the same place. I think keeping away from the same old boring routine is a good start.

Do you have kids or a family to support? If you don't, choose happiness over good money at a job you hate.

[cardguy]

Yeah - I dunno'. I have zero passion for any project except that which means never having to work again. So - I would rather try and hit on something big. Than spend time updating my CV for a better job. Still - in the meanwhile - I am definitely going to look into doing some kind of nightshift work. I think that could fit me really well.

Still - to me - work is like being in prison.

The problem isn't the conditions.

The problem is having your freedom taken from you.

[iknowexactly]

Bcak when I was about 30 I realized not having a full time job was one of my highest priority goals. I learned my profession because it's one that doesn't require 5 day weeks.

It took me 15 years to get it working. I never had a job I liked my whole life, although I liked moments at work.

One thing you have to remember is that many people don't really have other stuff they want to do-- not with any driving intensity any way.

The world would be a weird place if most people didn't want to work.

So you've got to watch your image management, because people get jealous, or think you're lazy, or grandiose etc.

Just plan, save money, get a different profession, SOMETHING. It was 20 years from the time I started my graduate program to the time I had a passive income I could barely live off. Someone who saves more religiously should be able to do it in 12-15 at the most.

And try to enjoy SOMETHING, one little thing every day, so you don'y give that whole day to the MatrixCombineMilitaryIndustrialComplex.

And watch out for alcohol, it can totally prevent you from having enough energy to do ANYTHING but your Matrix Service.

[cardguy]

@MidnightSpecial - I don't have a wife and kids. And I never will.

I could kinda' imagine possibly (but doubtfully - if I am honest) consider it if I didn't have to work for a living.

But having a job means I am already giving up too much freedom. So - I jealously guard what little I have left.

[WesternCancer]

(10-27-2013 02:42 PM)cardguy Wrote:  

I am not complaining. Since I understand how the economic system works. But I just wish people would be honest about their feelings. The problem isn't my job. The problem is having to sign your life over to somebody else's schedule. Sigh...

I definitely feel this way too. I don't mind my job, its simple and can be fast paced. Theres only one person I hate working with and they're usually not on my shift.

The biggest annoyance to me is that every day feels like starting up an old engine that just won't turn over. It sputters and sputters, but never fully goes.

Its completely absurd to think that I spend half of my waking hours doing something completely unrelated to what I want to do. Even though you get the rest of the day to yourself and 2 days on the weekend its not enough to get anything going. You can't go on a cool road trip, you can't immerse yourself in a subject of interest without getting interrupted.

[cardguy]

I mean - I would love to see more of my friends. And do crazy shit with them. But work just has my hands tied. I use every weekend and holiday to work on the projects that get put aside when I am work.

Meaning I don't have any time for my friends. It is kinda' sad - since having a job has totally changed the priorities I had when I was back at university. And living the best days of my life.

And as you said - what time you do get off - is never long enough to get fully absorbed in something.

I remember Ricky Gervais saying the best thing about being rich was not having to wake up to the sound of the alarm clock.

He knows what the score is...

[Glock]

You need to enter a new field. You sound like you're more depressed than even you realize. I love my job and wish I had more time to do it. It sure beats most of the time I spend at home fixing things or going shopping with my wife.

My job is not repetitive and it is very entrepreneurial. It's also intellectually challenging and takes the better part of a career to truly master in all respects.

I think you should pick a new field that allows you to soar and forge your own path in the same way. I don't know enough about you advise on which field you should enter, but it's clear from your posts that you are not happy and should change fields.

[The Lizard of Oz]

cardguy, I know exactly how you feel.

There is a type of quite intelligent man with a taste for a life of thinking and pleasure that finds the very idea of work of any kind distasteful. I share these predilections.

The problem with this way of thinking is that it's completely useless for you.

Unless you are born rich or win the lottery, you have to work to support yourself. There is no escaping this reality.

Whenever there is a reality you can't escape, you should accept it. Don't waste your time hating or resenting it.

Because here's a secret. The thing that really screws you over is not the work. It's the hatred and the resentment of it, if you allow it to get out of hand. These emotions, if they're allowed to fester, are what curdles the hearts and minds of otherwise brilliant and curious men. Don't fall into that trap.

You have to work anyway. So just relax into it. Let the great river of work pass over you, so to speak. Don't fight it.

And here's another secret: if you do something for long enough without bothering to resent it, over time, it will deepen and shape your mind in ways that would surprise you. There is really no such thing as perfect drudgery. There are all the little things about your actual workplace, the habits you acquire, the people you come to like and dislike, all these things over time amount to something that is a lot more than it seems to the naked eye.

But these great depths come only through patience and relaxing into life.

*******************

In more practical terms, there are two strategies you can adopt. Either try to find work that can make you money fast enough so that one day you're able to not work anymore, or very little.

Or do a much less demanding job, but with the understanding that you'll have to work until you retire.

I think either one of these strategies can be fine. You have to choose in accordance with your skills, temperament, and practical situation.

But whatever you do, don't waste your time on feelings of anger or resentment. That's the way to actual loserdom: that kind that comes from losing the world, because you let your impatience and ingratitude get the better of you. That would be a shame, and it's not necessary. It's up to you to just let these feelings go.

[cardguy]

My job is great. It is just the routine I hate. The going to bed and waking up. It is like your living on somebody else's schedule.

Like I cannot enjoy holidays. Since you always have work to come back to. I just hate anything that limits you.

Let me give you an example.

Imagine - this weekend - I fall in love in the most intense way possible. And have a crazy weekend - where everything is insanely fun.

To me the experience is like a hollow dream you wake up from. Since - come Monday morning - I will be sat at my desk doing somebody else's shit.

And the idea of that - just robs the mystery and spontaneity of life for me. Unlike when I was at university - when you you could do what the fuck you want.

Freedom. You either have it or you don't. And any limit on it means you no longer have it.

[AnonymousBosch]

(10-27-2013 02:51 PM)cardguy Wrote:  

Still - to me - work is like being in prison.

The problem isn't the conditions.

The problem is having your freedom taken from you.

Look at it this way: you'd experience the same loss of freedom if you were working for subsistence, but you're in a position to do it for less hours a day in an air-conditioned / heated environment and won't die of starvation should a blight wipe out this year's crops.

Either that or learn to hustle. A mate of mine thinks there's nothing more masculine than making easy money.

I remember a girl I was hitting on last year telling me her big life philosophy: "Everyone shouldn't have to work. We should all just do the things we love doing and get paid for it. So artists should make art and singers should sing. Everyone is good at something."

My response: "Who cleans the toilets?"

[cardguy]

@The Lizard of Oz. Thanks for the thoughtful response!

Now I am not angry at the world. I am just trying to be honest. Since - I want to challenge the corporate mindset which has crept over to the UK from America. Which is that work is great - and if you are not happy. Well - don't worry - just find a better job!

I was at a Christening last weekend - and it was so nice hearing a freind of mine agree with me that the very idea of work is soul destroying. It curdles all that is wonderful and beautiful about the world.

It is like the 'be positive' mindsets that gets preached to those with cancer.

Well - sometimes it is nice to kick back and let loose with some real feelings.

I am not angry. I just want to get some fresh air from all the corporate bullshit that gets drilled into people.

"But it was all right, everything was all right, the struggle was finished. He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother”

[cardguy]

I wanted to post this rant for awhile. But I got round to it now whilst listening to some music which was important to me when I was younger.

And that is one of the things that is shit about work.

When I used to listen to music (and didn't have a job) - you could daydream and wonder about the adventures that tomorrow might bring. And that contemplation added to the impact of the music.

But not now.

I know what tomorrow will bring.

The same as it has bought for the past 28 Mondays in a row...

[Teedub]

You should read Plato's Republic, I think a man like you would enjoy life in that world.

I've only read it partially, but my brother said it basically said life should be about pursuit of knowledge, and only that. I've had a few drinks...

[Samseau]

Cardguy - save up some money, buy some cheap real estate in a third world country, and live off the rents. Never work again, but you'll also be separated from your friends and family.

[cardguy]

(10-27-2013 03:09 PM)AnonymousBosch Wrote:  

(10-27-2013 02:51 PM)cardguy Wrote:  

Still - to me - work is like being in prison.

The problem isn't the conditions.

The problem is having your freedom taken from you.

Look at it this way: you'd experience the same loss of freedom if you were working for subsistence, but you're in a position to do it for less hours a day in an air-conditioned / heated environment and won't die of starvation should a blight wipe out this year's crops.

Either that or learn to hustle. A mate of mine thinks there's nothing more masculine than making easy money.

I remember a girl I was hitting on last year telling me her big life philosophy: "Everyone shouldn't have to work. We should all just do the things we love doing and get paid for it. So artists should make art and singers should sing. Everyone is good at something."

My response: "Who cleans the toilets?"

I agree. I am not stupid. I know how the economic system works.

But again - it is like cancer. It exists - people get it. Hell - from my analysis - I think it will never even be cured. Since the basis of cancer is practically indistinguishable from the basis of life itself (the continuous division of cells).

But - you are still allowed to be a bit depressed if you get cancer. I'm just having a moan...

Sorry is that beta? :-)

[Teedub]

(10-27-2013 03:12 PM)cardguy Wrote:  

@The Lizard of Oz. Thanks for the thoughtful response!

Now I am not angry at the world. I am just trying to be honest. Since - I want to challenge the corporate mindset which has crept over to the UK from America. Which is that work is great - and if you are not happy. Well - don't worry - just find a better job!

Like I mentioned earlier, do you have any skills that you could use to work for yourself? Tons of guys here have amazing advice on making yourself location independent and also doing something you enjoy but getting paid to do it. I love writing, and I enjoy sales writing, so I am moving into copywriting and article writing. There's tons of things an intellectual like you could do, you just need to devote a few hours a day into deciding where to go with it.

[cardguy]

My CV is shit. And I don't think I have any valuable skills.

I enjoy intellectual pursuits. But that doesn't make me smart.

A bit like watching porn doesn't make you sexy.

[scorpion]

Cardguy, you need to get out of the corporate-style grind. I totally relate to the feelings you describe. I used to feel the same way when I had a corporate gig.

There is simply nothing you can do except find another way to make money. You will continue to live in this sort of prison until you do.

The good thing is there is a lot of opportunity for a smart guy like yourself to make money on your own. Dedicate some time to investigating ways that you can provide value to others. Look at your own skills and interests (for example, I believe you have mentioned before about practicing magic/illusions, there is probably some way you can monetize that, either by performing or instructing others in the art).

Basically, you have to slap yourself in the face and be willing to take the risk of walking away from the steady corporate paycheck. That's the only way you can escape the soul-crushing feelings you describe.

[Teedub]

I echo scorpion. Cardguy, my CV is also pretty dire. The goal is to work for yourself where you never need to attend a job interview again, or present your CV for that matter.