Don't Take Your Inner Brat to Work
by Pauline Wallin, Ph.D.
Are you taking your inner brat to work? Not sure? Let?s do a quick check list:
* Do you frequently complain that something isn?t fair?
* Do you get angry at least once a day?
* Do you hate at least one person at work?
* Have you almost quit your job on the spot because you were upset?
* Are you a spreader of gossip?
* Do you frequently ?forget? to do work or pass on messages that other people are waiting for?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, chances are you don?t enjoy your job very much. Research has shown that while some jobs are more stressful than others, your level of dissatisfaction has more to do with your attitude than with the job itself.
For example, consider two women who work as nurse?s aides in a hospital. Nurse?s aide A complains, ?All I do is clean up other people?s messes. Patients don?t appreciate what I do for them. If I?m 5 minutes late or if I forget to wash out a bed pan, I get yelled at. When I first started here they promised I?d get two breaks a day. Now I?m lucky if I even get one. I hate this job.?
But here?s how nurse?s aide B sees her job: ?I like to know that I can make the patients more comfortable. They don?t always show appreciation, but I guess I wouldn?t either if I was in as much pain as they are. Sometimes I get so busy that I forget things, and my supervisor gets mad. She?s got the administration breathing down her neck and can?t afford any patient complaints. There are days when I don?t even get a break, but the time sure flies by on those days. Even though it?s a hard job, I like helping people.?
You can see from this example that your job is what you make it. It makes no difference whether you work inside or outside, at a desk or behind a counter; or whether you wear jeans or suits to work. If you focus on the negative you will never enjoy your job, no matter how much you get paid.
Nurse?s aide A in the above example has a strong inner brat. She complains and finds fault. She perceives herself as a victim. Not only will her inner brat make her irritable and hard to get along with; it will deprive her of the opportunity to feel good about herself.
Nurse?s aide B is more positive about her job, but at the same time she is also realistic. She?s aware of the hard work and lack of appreciation, but instead of dwelling on what?s missing from her job, she focuses on why she chose to work there in the first place. She gets tired and stressed but she also goes home with a sense of satisfaction.
No one is cheerful one hundred percent of the time. But people who don?t let their inner brats make mountains out of molehills suffer less stress, and are more optimistic about the future .
There are many things you cannot control at work. For example, you have no control over your boss?s moods. If your boss is in a bad mood, he or she might take it out on you. But you don?t have to let your boss?s inner brat push your buttons and unleash your own inner brat.
Some aspects of your job may be monotonous or unpleasant. But even then, you can view them in a different way, e.g., by setting up a challenge such as racing the clock, or by doing things in a different order or with different tools. What this does is give you more of a sense of control over your work, thereby reducing both physical and mental stress.
by Pauline Wallin, Ph.D.
Are you taking your inner brat to work? Not sure? Let?s do a quick check list:
* Do you frequently complain that something isn?t fair?
* Do you get angry at least once a day?
* Do you hate at least one person at work?
* Have you almost quit your job on the spot because you were upset?
* Are you a spreader of gossip?
* Do you frequently ?forget? to do work or pass on messages that other people are waiting for?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, chances are you don?t enjoy your job very much. Research has shown that while some jobs are more stressful than others, your level of dissatisfaction has more to do with your attitude than with the job itself.
For example, consider two women who work as nurse?s aides in a hospital. Nurse?s aide A complains, ?All I do is clean up other people?s messes. Patients don?t appreciate what I do for them. If I?m 5 minutes late or if I forget to wash out a bed pan, I get yelled at. When I first started here they promised I?d get two breaks a day. Now I?m lucky if I even get one. I hate this job.?
But here?s how nurse?s aide B sees her job: ?I like to know that I can make the patients more comfortable. They don?t always show appreciation, but I guess I wouldn?t either if I was in as much pain as they are. Sometimes I get so busy that I forget things, and my supervisor gets mad. She?s got the administration breathing down her neck and can?t afford any patient complaints. There are days when I don?t even get a break, but the time sure flies by on those days. Even though it?s a hard job, I like helping people.?
You can see from this example that your job is what you make it. It makes no difference whether you work inside or outside, at a desk or behind a counter; or whether you wear jeans or suits to work. If you focus on the negative you will never enjoy your job, no matter how much you get paid.
Nurse?s aide A in the above example has a strong inner brat. She complains and finds fault. She perceives herself as a victim. Not only will her inner brat make her irritable and hard to get along with; it will deprive her of the opportunity to feel good about herself.
Nurse?s aide B is more positive about her job, but at the same time she is also realistic. She?s aware of the hard work and lack of appreciation, but instead of dwelling on what?s missing from her job, she focuses on why she chose to work there in the first place. She gets tired and stressed but she also goes home with a sense of satisfaction.
No one is cheerful one hundred percent of the time. But people who don?t let their inner brats make mountains out of molehills suffer less stress, and are more optimistic about the future .
There are many things you cannot control at work. For example, you have no control over your boss?s moods. If your boss is in a bad mood, he or she might take it out on you. But you don?t have to let your boss?s inner brat push your buttons and unleash your own inner brat.
Some aspects of your job may be monotonous or unpleasant. But even then, you can view them in a different way, e.g., by setting up a challenge such as racing the clock, or by doing things in a different order or with different tools. What this does is give you more of a sense of control over your work, thereby reducing both physical and mental stress.
