Arleen Bradley Career Coaching

70 to 80% of Americans hate their job.

It’s a well-known fact that many people hate their jobs. In fact, you may be one of them or know someone who does. But the real question is why and why do they stay. For the purpose of this post, I will only address why. Another post will address why they stay.

Basically, there are three reasons why people hate their jobs. The answer is the work, the people, and/or the work environment. Pretty broad categories to be sure; however, this is what I am hearing.

Let’s look at the first reason—the work. The work includes the tasks needed to be done to do the work, the industry and they type of work. Some people do work they don’t like because it is someone else’s agenda. Think of family run businesses that expect the children of the owners or relatives to work in the business. Sometimes, it’s work that is not of interest to the next generation. Whether it’s a legal, medical, retail, plumbing, electrical or some other business not every child wants to relive the experience in the business as an adult.

Boredom in a job that has no challenge causes some people to hate their job along with working long hours, doing the jobs of others who have left with unrealistic deadlines and doing a job because it is the only one they could get at the time.

Another reason is the environment. The environment includes the location and condition of the building. Safety, comfort, lighting, temperature and air quality cause some to hate their jobs. The corporate culture that determines the policies and procedures causes dislike for a job.

It’s hard to imagine a forest ranger sitting inside a building all day or an accountant hiking through a forest marking trees. Indoors people would feel terrible in the outdoors and vice versa. People who like to move around would go crazy sitting at a customer service terminal all day.

The job environment must match the individuals’ style for the worker to be happy. I know plenty of people who say they would hate being in a position where their hands were dirty most of the time. Corporate culture that requires certain dress codes prevents some people from freely expressing their personalities is shunned by some. Maybe you will only work for companies that have coffee stations every 500 feet and an in-house gym.

The last reason is the people. From what I have read and heard this is the most popular. They hate their boss, or manager either immediately above them or further up the ladder. Or maybe their co-workers, the customers, the vendors, or anyone they come in contact with. People have different personalities and not everyone can or want to get along with everyone.

Some complain about micro-managing bosses while others complain they can’t get any direction from their boss. The person sitting next to you could drive you crazy and you just can’t take it anymore. Maybe you had a romantic relationship with a co-worker and the relationship is over. Or you may have lost creditability with your boss or co-workers. For whatever reasons, people are the hot buttons that can really put people over the edge.

You are probably wondering why money isn’t on the list. It’s because money is entirely different piece of the equation. People are willing to stick around and put up with the above mentioned items if the money is good for a while, but at some point the money loses its’ importance. I hate this job but I stay because of the money becomes there is no money in the world worth putting up with this.

It is estimated that somewhere between 70 to 80% of Americans hate their job. These results in lost revenue are due to increased illness and lack of productivity. It’s a catch 22 situation for employees and employers alike. Things can’t get fixed because of lack of income and the things that will help workers can’t get done causing more dissatisfaction. And the cycle continues.

How can I help you find a job you love?