One of the most important things we want from our life is to enjoy it. No matter what we are doing we want to be able to enjoy doing it, have fun while doing it, or receive some sense of accomplishment from doing it. In some jobs doing any of the above things is not possible for any number of reasons. One of the biggest factors in not being able to do something we enjoy is we have to have an income and we can’t earn enough doing what we want to do.

As the old saying goes, beggars can not be choosers. There may not many jobs for you that both pay the bills and give job satisfaction too. You have to choose what is most important; generally paying the bills wins out. What do you do when the job you have is not the best job in the world and you can not leave it?

Disliking your job, and not trying very hard to do your job are common complaints. Promoting that behavior yourself is not a wise choice. Like it or not, the job you have at the moment is a job you need. It is nice to think you will just quit because you are tired of doing it, but for anyone out of school, quitting because you want to is more of a pipe dream than reality. If you feel this way it is time to take control of your thinking and start to see your job in a positive perspective.

Our job is a large part of us and who we are. If we choose poor behaviors at work, those poor behaviors eventually spill over into the rest of our life. Choose a positive behavior at work, and our life will be better for it.

Your job takes a large portion of your waking life. It may not seem like it, but add up your working time, getting ready for work time, your commute time, and leaving work to get somewhere else time. That time added up is a large part of your awake time each week. Making the most of that time makes you feel better and makes that time go by faster.

Your job is you. Whatever you are doing, what and how you do your job is a reflection of the person you are. If you do sloppy work, and do the minimum, chances are you are treating your life the same way. Life rewards you with what you put into your life.

Your job is everything you own. Whether you own a few changes of clothes and a pair of shoes, or you have a flashy toy filled life, chances are money you earned from your job is responsible for what you own.

Your job keeps you healthy. You get paid money to live on. If you have a higher level job, you receive benefits too. Your job helps keep you healthier than if you did not have money or health benefits.

Your job is your charity. Whether you tithe through your church, occasionally give change to the needy, eat at certain fast foods, or buy certain products, your job is what keeps you on the giving and off the receiving side of charity.

Your job is your contribution to your community. No one lives or works in a vacuum. Your job is your contribution to your community no matter how you define it. How big of a contribution you make in your community depends on how much pride and energy you put into what you do. Whether you run large city, or sweep a sidewalk, you are needed by your community, and you help make your community what it is.

Your job is important because _____. You fill in the rest of this paragraph. Only you know what more personal reasons your job is important. Perhaps it is a social reason, maybe something more personal.

I used to listen to a teacher tell us kids, “Take care of your job, and it will take care of you.” That Teacher I discovered knew what he was talking about. I have a related post here if you wish to read it too.