Work is Work

Introduction

According to my grandmother, once we graduate, it is our responsibility to find a job and support ourselves and we should never be a parasite to our parents.

As you would have expected, I work as a pharmacist after graduation. Do I love my job?

• It is more of a mixed of tiredness and satisfaction.
• Some days are exhausting, making me wish for nothing more than finish work on time and head home.
• Sometimes, the discomforts or headaches at work just vanish the moment I go home.
• Similar to many of you, I shared the same dream of having enough money to enjoy life without having to work.

Working for a Living

It is important to distinguish between chasing dreams and working for a living.

• The daily jobs we do at work are not solely driven by passion, but by the pay cheque that arrives gracefully at the end of each month.

Hence, whenever you lose motivation or feel too tired to go work, tell yourself, you are not just going to work, but you are earning the resources to continue living and pursue your passions.

• Every hour brings you closer to your goals.

Relationships at Work

Before working, you have only ever surrounded yourself with people you liked. However, in a work environment, you may not always have the luxury of avoiding people you do not like.

• You may not like everybody with whom you work, and they may not necessarily like you either.
• After all, in a workplace, the most important thing is the work, not your personal relationships.

On another perspectives, some people may make good friends, but NOT necessarily be good colleagues.

• A person can be caring and helpful, yet their work ethic may not be as strong or consistent as you would have expected.

Be Professional

In my opinion, work-related issues should end at work and not to be taken personally.

• To illustrate, if your boss criticizes you for a mistake or a customer complains about prices, it is best to take it as constructive feedback and try to improve where possible.
• It is important not to let it spoil your mood of the day.

Strict compliance to standardized protocols at work is crucial.

• To ensure full compliance and improve work quality, bosses sometimes have to guide (scold) their subordinates.

End of Day

After a long day at work, people unwind and relax in different ways.

• While some may be serious at work, they may also have other interests outside of work.
• They may spend their evenings planning their holidays, or just pondering over what to have for dinner.
• Life is not just black and white, but a complex mix of different shades of grey.

Also, we all face personal problems and challenges daily, which we may not feel comfortable sharing with colleagues.

• Believe me, till now, you have only seen one side of me.
• More importantly, forming a fixed impression of a person based on a past incident is inherently biased, as people may react differently in different circumstances, and we are human beings who are constantly improving.
  

Summary

Ultimately, work is just part of our lives.

• After work, it may be beneficial to step back and view our current job as a part-time occupation. We should instead concentrate on pursuing our genuine interests, such as food, hobbies, travel and family.
• Dwelling on how patients or customers treated us at work is unproductive and a waste of time since they are unlikely to care about our emotions or well-being.