Worthless Work

[mattbcl]

I realize this has the potential to make for a very touchy and sensitive subject, so I won't ask for any names, situations, or direct experiences from anyone else here. But lately I've had occasion to think that my job is ultimately leading me nowhere, that I'm never going to be respected by my fellow employees and that I'm not really doing anything of consequence. It gets me down in the dumps when this feeling comes over me. Wishing it away isn't really an option - I really ought to do something about it. This would most certainly mean seeking new employment... an odd thing to consider, when I'm the one giving my employers recommendations for who we should hire out of the spate of applicants we just got.

(Maybe Blade can direct me to the room of people who care?)

So, on to the topic at hand: anybody else ever get the feeling you could be doing something better with yourself than you are? What do you do when that feeling comes along?

[kurai]

The worker becomes all the poorer the more wealth he produces, the more his production increases in power and size. The worker becomes an ever cheaper commodity the more commodities he creates. The devaluation of the world of men is in direct proportion to the increasing value of the world of things. Labor produces not only commodities; it produces itself and the worker as a commodity – and this at the same rate at which it produces commodities in general.

This fact expresses merely that the object which labor produces – labor’s product – confronts it as something alien, as a power independent of the producer. The product of labor is labor which has been embodied in an object, which has become material: it is the objectification of labor. Labor’s realization is its objectification. Under these economic conditions this realization of labor appears as loss of realization for the workers; objectification as loss of the object and bondage to it; appropriation as estrangement, as alienation.

So much does the labor’s realization appear as loss of realization that the worker loses realization to the point of starving to death. So much does objectification appear as loss of the object that the worker is robbed of the objects most necessary not only for his life but for his work. Indeed, labor itself becomes an object which he can obtain only with the greatest effort and with the most irregular interruptions. So much does the appropriation of the object appear as estrangement that the more objects the worker produces the less he can possess and the more he falls under the sway of his product, capital.

All these consequences are implied in the statement that the worker is related to the product of labor as to an alien object. For on this premise it is clear that the more the worker spends himself, the more powerful becomes the alien world of objects which he creates over and against himself, the poorer he himself – his inner world – becomes, the less belongs to him as his own. It is the same in religion. The more man puts into God, the less he retains in himself. The worker puts his life into the object; but now his life no longer belongs to him but to the object. Hence, the greater this activity, the more the worker lacks objects. Whatever the product of his labor is, he is not. Therefore, the greater this product, the less is he himself. The alienation of the worker in his product means not only that his labor becomes an object, an external existence, but that it exists outside him, independently, as something alien to him, and that it becomes a power on its own confronting him. It means that the life which he has conferred on the object confronts him as something hostile and alien.

[Deadwood_Zen]

I do. Except I don't have a real job. I play folk/pop/crap songs locally, but that's getting me nowhere nor is what I want to do with my life.

I suggest looking for a job that you know you can go farther in. Finding your replacement for a crap job isn't that bad, is it?

[Drago]

Right now, I am working for money. Not for progression, knowledge or growth (department of redundancy department), simply money. My intention is to become active on career pursuit next year.

So for now, I can just kind of kick back and relax, and be in a state of 'working unemployment'.

[classy_cat18]

My degree is in Computer Animation and Game Design. What is my job? SELLING AVON. Not a frickin' day goes by I don't get that feeling. But I just keep on doing what I can, hoping that I can one day put together that perfect portfolio and get a sweet gig doing what I love all day and night. So like what I do now, only I get paid for it and not feeling any guilt. ^^

[mr_pikachu]

The worker becomes all the poorer the more wealth he produces, the more his production increases in power and size. The worker becomes an ever cheaper commodity the more commodities he creates. The devaluation of the world of men is in direct proportion to the increasing value of the world of things. Labor produces not only commodities; it produces itself and the worker as a commodity – and this at the same rate at which it produces commodities in general.

This fact expresses merely that the object which labor produces – labor’s product – confronts it as something alien, as a power independent of the producer. The product of labor is labor which has been embodied in an object, which has become material: it is the objectification of labor. Labor’s realization is its objectification. Under these economic conditions this realization of labor appears as loss of realization for the workers; objectification as loss of the object and bondage to it; appropriation as estrangement, as alienation.

So much does the labor’s realization appear as loss of realization that the worker loses realization to the point of starving to death. So much does objectification appear as loss of the object that the worker is robbed of the objects most necessary not only for his life but for his work. Indeed, labor itself becomes an object which he can obtain only with the greatest effort and with the most irregular interruptions. So much does the appropriation of the object appear as estrangement that the more objects the worker produces the less he can possess and the more he falls under the sway of his product, capital.

All these consequences are implied in the statement that the worker is related to the product of labor as to an alien object. For on this premise it is clear that the more the worker spends himself, the more powerful becomes the alien world of objects which he creates over and against himself, the poorer he himself – his inner world – becomes, the less belongs to him as his own. It is the same in religion. The more man puts into God, the less he retains in himself. The worker puts his life into the object; but now his life no longer belongs to him but to the object. Hence, the greater this activity, the more the worker lacks objects. Whatever the product of his labor is, he is not. Therefore, the greater this product, the less is he himself. The alienation of the worker in his product means not only that his labor becomes an object, an external existence, but that it exists outside him, independently, as something alien to him, and that it becomes a power on its own confronting him. It means that the life which he has conferred on the object confronts him as something hostile and alien.

Thank you, Karl Marx (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1844/manuscripts/labour.htm).

I suppose it's a little different for me. In graduate school, I'm increasingly satisfied with my own work, even as the standards of academia point to my goals as the wrong ones. The "publish or perish" mentality promotes the rapid-fire production of manuscripts regardless of quality, hence the deluge of horrifically ill-conceived manuscripts in scholarly journals. Each of these shoddy manuscripts, however, is another line on a curriculum vitae, another shot at an award likely to be decided by recognition rather than the quality of the individual piece, and another item counted toward hiring or tenure. Quantity is usually deemed more important than quality, so scholars like myself who focus on making an especially meaningful impact through a few important projects are consistently ignored, losing to those who shovel piles of nonsense that help no one but which add to the "I have 57 publications!" figure.

It's frustrating to know that even your best efforts will be unappreciated -- or at least underappreciated -- by colleagues and employers. It helps, though, to remind myself that my work is making a difference, and that even if no one notices, the world will be a better place as a result of my efforts.

Well, that's the dream, at least.

[Mikachu Yukitatsu]

I have only lukio (somewhat corresponds high school) education and had a small job as a Japanese teacher. I'm afraid they won't let me teach any more due to my last hospital period, my health is always unstable. As for my next job, they are planning a job in a library or something. Yes, they'll put me on the work, and I have hard time accepting the change, and perhaps I'm going to get myself fired on the first day on purpose! Working at the library would be OK, I guess, but somehow I can't help bullying myself with the thought. That's partly why I couldn't get sleep last night.

Nevertheless, I don't want to believe my studies and work are in vain. For instance, I can use what I know about Chinese characters in my 'art'. And come to TPM when I want to speak English. Also, I think I might be able to teach some mathematics to my friends' children.

Hobbies > Work

[shazza]

It's reassuring to see we're not alone. I started full time employment in January. Initially it was rewarding – both to be contributing my mind to an external source and improving my own self worth (and I could not complain about the materialistic side of it). However, my employer started to outsource much of my information to external contractors. This meant for him more expenses in pay cheques, however it hurried the process to ultimately garner a more lucrative profit. By May, my role was to the extent where I was simply finding relevant pictures to match the suitable text. It made me question my own worth, abilities and so on. In hindsight, everything seemed to be taking a turn for the worse all at once after Easter: darker and colder days had returned, the work was tripe and monotonous, and the work environment had a two week extremely low morale as my boss wasn’t making as much of a profit as usual, releasing his anger onto us.

I now see how my anxiety and depression set in, and I returned to a rather vicious and regressive cycle. I slept in a couple of times because I loathed the work, and sleeping in just made it worse. I was not being the best me I can be. I reassured myself based on the money I was receiving, and external expectations on me that, now I am 22 and having completed uni, I am required to enter the workforce regardless of how much I despise the work in question.

But there was a seed that started at day one that I have not yet mentioned. I was paid as an independent contractor, negating me of sick leave, annual leave, overtime etc. Moreover I was forced to pay my own tax, having an ABN (Australian Business Number). As I dabbled in some research, this is classed as “sham contracting” and I can report him for it.

I took a day off last Thursday after suffering a flu and nearly having a panic attack going to work. I arrived on Friday and my boss terminated our arrangement on the grounds that: he cannot afford to have people taking too many days off, and accused me of producing subpar work. I looked over it and assured him it wasn’t mine, but he was refusing to listen. He has still offered to be both a verbal or written reference, and has been highly affable in post employment communication (the first being today after trying to work up the courage to contact him). Centrelink bullshit in the interim, essentially.

It undoubtedly strangles your self-worth and makes you ponder your future, but after resuming exercise, a good diet and some meditation, I am ready to tackle on whatever the future holds. As I further reflect on my 7 months then, I am adamant I am capable of so much more; and whatever sub par work I produced is not a reflection of my intelligence but rather my increased apathy and depression doing such mundane tasks.

Having thought I’d be paying over $2k to the tax man, it turns out it’s only $400, leaving me with about $1,800 savings. I haven’t travelled in awhile and, since watching the film ‘Into The Wild’, feel like going somewhere random in Australia I have never been before just for a few days. Nothing overly expensive; I just need to get away. Some may say it’s a holiday from dole bludging or whatever, but I just think I need a holiday from my place in society. I want to escape and not tell anyone.

And Mikachu is right: I noticed since I was part of the 9 to 5 grind, my hobbies were diminishing due to the lack of time and motivation/energy to do so. However, I think this has a lot to do with the amount of sleep and the quality of it.

I have good hope for 2012. I feel it’s time to move to Melbourne and do a Graduate Diploma in Counselling. I’m still not too sure what I want from this life, but I know it’s the only one I’ll ever have.

Good luck to all. You should not waste your life doing something you do not enjoy and living someone else's dreams -- regardless of how pertinent the insecure society we live in wants you to join in them. Life is truly a blessing. You are nothing but a flash of consciousnesses between two darknesses. Read ‘The Wisdom Of Insecurity’. x

[Asilynne]

Right now, I am working for money. Not for progression, knowledge or growth (department of redundancy department), simply money. My intention is to become active on career pursuit next year.

So for now, I can just kind of kick back and relax, and be in a state of 'working unemployment'.

This exactly. I had somewhat of a Quarter Life Crisis this year, where for years I was pursuing the dream of working my way up through job experience and school to one day be a veterinarian, the same dream I had all through my life ever since I was very young. Then, I actually worked in a vet's office, and while I know my experiences at that particular office weren't necessarily what I would go through in EVERY office, the basic thing is always the same.
I wanted to get into that business to help animals, and while that is obviously a big part of it, I was disillusioned at how much of it was also "how can we make the most money". Yes, I realise its a business and it needs to fund itself, I realise the equipment is expensive and so is the schooling, but I sat there and watched as they played with the numbers in the computer and made the prices higher for some people because they were really well off, or recommend things they knew they wouldn't need because it got them extra $$. I've watched them have to put down perfectly healthy and happy animals just because they are required to when the owner brings them there and says thats what they want. I've come in early and stayed over two hours late sometimes because we had an emergency and had to, and I've seen how the techs would be on call all day and night even their days off just in case they needed to come in for an emergency C-section or something.

I realised that I could help animals without making it my career, and that I could make money just to live and volunteer in my free time. Because really, the dream that I want more than anything is to have a family and be a mom, and I would miss out on spending time with my family if I was gone all the time as a vet tech. I'm not the career woman type, I just want to be a wife and a mom, work would just be what gets me money.

You just need to figure out what your priorities are. If you hate your job and the only reason is because you feel you aren't making a difference, consider volunteering in your spare time. If you want to focus on your career find a job where you can grow and better yourself, if this one is stagnant. But, your job doesn't always have to be your life, you can always just do something for the money and the benefits, and let that fund your REAL life :)

[Shadow Wolf]

Because really, the dream that I want more than anything is to have a family and be a mom, and I would miss out on spending time with my family if I was gone all the time as a vet tech. I'm not the career woman type, I just want to be a wife and a mom, work would just be what gets me money.

I've finally found someone who shares my vision in life. Kudos for this excellent dream.

Having this in mind, I can also say that I'm the type who does not want to have a lot of money (mainly because I've witnessed the changes that happen to someone who begins to earn a large amount of money)

Right now, I'm taking a course in Computer Technology and my goals are to get a part time (if possible, have my own store) and enjoy the little things (a nice cup of coffee in the morning, a family game of Parcheesi or Monopoly and the joy of making my loved one happy.)

So yeah, I guess I might not have too much problems with work. However, I have to say that people should decide on what they truly want before pursuing a dream. Many people head blindingly into university because, instead of receiving advice on life, goals and priorities, they have a daily dose of monotonous books, homeworks and tests. I can't say that this will reduce the chances of finding a boring job, but I can surely say that this will make people feel more satisfied, since they will have a clear vision of what they want and how to achieve it.

[DivineAll]

I've only so far had four jobs in my lifetime, five if you include a paying after-school activity, and my current job has me paid by commission. Paying by commission isn't enough for me to pursue my current goals, dreams, and ideas, and it certainly will not accomplish what I really want to do in the future, but for the time being, I just have accept my current situation and hope for the better.

However, knowing my luck, it probably will not happen anytime soon.

[Blademaster]

It's a sad world we live in. Pretty much ALL work today is worthless. I guarantee you that of the nearly 7 billion people on this planet, far less than just 1% of them are both working in a meaningful field AND are truly happy with said work.

And I'm still jobless, by the way.

[DarkestLight]

As am I. This is why I left my job. Looking for new work. Found it. Should be happy with it, once I get there.

[woz]

Welcome to capitalism.

[Magmar]

Oh, dear, I know the feeling. :(

I've been in the same job position for over three years, believe it or not. I have so much expertise, but nowhere to go. So what I'm doing is furthering my education in unique ways in order to differentiate myself, and then I'm starting my own consulting gig and doing research. This way, I can rely on me to make my own money, can promote myself and give myself raises whenever I want just by working harder, and maybe one day have my own reality TV show. It'll be quality, no worries ;)

I'm also going to a school that's on the verge of being accredited by some prestigious snobs that indicates that my MBA will have come from one of the premier 5% of institutions in the world for it. It all looks good so far, and as we would be receiving it next fall (and I'm graduating Spring 2013), I'll get the bonus MBA without the extra tuition for going to a quality school.

My post-grad plans are Harvard for organizational behavior. I will be posting live from Harvard in two years. It's my goal and my dream all in one.

And then, as I'm making $140,000 a year or more and looked to as the expert, I'll give retail management the middle finger. :)

[shazza]

I need to do some post grad studies but I am so lost. :cry:

[mr_pikachu]

Magmar: A wise decision (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/How-Higher-Education-Affects-usnews-1001103912.html), my friend. As for Harvard, were you thinking of a Ph.D. in organizational behavior? Interesting choice. I'm not sure how they rank in terms of sociology, but I presume you're looking for more of an applied focus than pure theoretical development for the sake of your future consulting work. Harvard may fit that side of the spectrum better, and besides, the name carries some considerable weight across fields, particularly in the business world. In any case, I applaud the ambition! :yes:

[Becky]

Well, I've already talked about myself in this thread (http://www.pokemasters.net/forums/showthread.php?t=22805), but I love being a graduate student. This week, I had the opportunity to co-facilitate teaching orientation for new graduate student teaching assistants at my university. Today, I facilitated micro-teaching (an opportunity where instructors give a lesson in 7 minutes, critique each other and are filmed). It's so exciting. I ran orientation with a Pharmacy professor, and we had some great conversations and worked quite well together. We each brought different perspectives to the day, and I learned things about her field.

And, in micro-teaching today, I facilitated with an electrical engineering professor. Again, it was so neat to work with someone in a background different from my own. Yet we all share a love for teaching and education.

Brian makes some good points about research, but at the same time (as someone who has co-authored on a number of publications), working on multiple projects gives you the chance to experience different areas of interest, research questions, working with different people. Granted, I'm not saying that quantity is necessarily better than quality, but I don't think in all cases it's necessarily bad. Depends on the field as well, I'm sure.

[Mikachu Yukitatsu]

The Finnish conscription army had an advertisement.

Tee työtä jolla on tarkoitus.
Do a work that has a meaning.

So there I went, spent a month practicing for a soldier career. Then was hospitalised.

So, come to Finnish army, everyone. Find your soldier side.

[ChobiChibi]

I just quit one crappy job and took up another one.

Needless to say I've not had the best few days...

[Katie]

I got my bachelors from a good school in a useful major and useful minor, involved myself with 3 internships, undergraduate research, several academic, physical, and social activities, worked to pay myself through school, and was 2 grades shy of cum laude overall (but magna cum laude for just my last 2 years, too bad that doesn't exist), yet 8 months after graduation I'm still working retail. In fact, my degree was the reason I wasn't promoted within to supervisor. "You have a degree, you will get a different job so why should I train you?" 8 MONTHS LATER AND 0 CALLBACKS, CLEARLY NOT!

No, really, I don't know what worthless feelings you're talking about I feel GREAT

[Charles Legend]

Some of you may know this already but I wrap the local newspaper for my dad, do I like it not really but I do it to earn the $20 he pays me for it.

Now I have always been interested in the many fields of science, I'm also very interested in cooking, so mainly my dream job would to be a chef who comes up with recons of all kinds of foods, for example Pizza... ;)

however you won't see most Vampires enjoying my cooking why because I'm use a lot of Garlic in my cooking and also Anchovies... ;)

Hey legends technically says that garlic has the power to repel evil, I Just wish it was powerful enough to knock out the begins of Glaucoma from my eyes...:(

~Charles Legend

[shazza]

I propose the foundation of this topic is where fellow TPM members down in their luck come to sympathise and motivate each other.

We are special. Some of us have dedicated ourselves to a Pokémon message board for over 10 years. Put that shit on your résumé.

[ChobiChibi]

Aha, when I was being trained for supervisor, I told a friend it was like moderating real life :D

I'm handing in my notice today, I'm a nervous wreck. I have to get through this shift and atleast 2 more :/ I'm worried she's gonna be pissed off at me and treat me differently for the next few days. Oh well. I'm the bigger man (lol), so I will just hold my head up high and get on with it :3