Not a day goes by that I don’t read a headline about how to retain your employees, the Great Resignation, and why everyone is quitting. During the pandemic, our buttons and our limits were pushed. I found myself with some bad days, and even declared personal quit days myself as I stomped/walked around the back yard in the tall wet grass after work.
What’s a personal quit day?
Well, you don’t actually resign, you just tell yourself, the cat, or a friend who will listen that today was rough and made you want to quit. I’d rehire myself by morning, of course, with a fresh start and full coffee cup, I’d be determined to make the next day better.
Before the pandemic, I had very few of these quit days, where the day would end and I’d wish I didn’t have to go back. I recall less than a handful in my professional career. Then COVID hit, we all went home, worked longer and harder to save our businesses, and were pushed to our emotional extremes at home, and at work. We’d experience good days, meh-days, and full on personal quit days.
With enough of these days, you begin to wonder if a move is the solution. For some, it is, and way to go if you are one of those professionals who left and found a better place to earn your paycheck.
But for others, it’s not a move you need, but a fresh lens.
Perhaps you end up talking to a group of students, or a new acquaintance about what you do, and it lights your fire once again about why you love your job. Or maybe it’s a genuine compliment from a from your boss, your team sending you a coffee, or a colleague offering to review your power point deck when the stakes are high and time is short. Whatever it is, it gives you the boost you need to keep going.
So as I look toward the last quarter of the year, I’m flipping the quit day script by starting 30 day gratitude challenge now instead of waiting for #grateful #blessed to be in style again. Each day I’m committed to declaring 1 reason why I love my day job.
Why do I call it a day job?
We all have multiple roles in life: mom, dad, brother, sister, dog walker, cat feeder, caregiver, husband, wife, best friend, etc. I’m focusing on the job we have where we spend 40+ hours trading our skills, knowledge, and results for a paycheck.
You want in? Join me over on Instagram @Abetter40withAmber and let me know why you love your day job.