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The main problem I have with the career lifestyle is I am expected to be available at all hours of the day, and I am supposed to "live and breathe" my career, even away from work.
This is for the same employer that then speaks of work life balance.
You shouldn't have to go above and beyond to be successful, it should be a choice that you shouldn't be penalized for if you want to leave your work at 9-5.
And I work in tech, as a consultant, so I can't wait to hear the backlash from my own industry.
The main problem I have with the career lifestyle is I am expected to be available at all hours of the day, and I am supposed to "live and breathe" my career, even away from work.
This is for the same employer that then speaks of work life balance.
You shouldn't have to go above and beyond to be successful, it should be a choice that you shouldn't be penalized for if you want to leave your work at 9-5.
And I work in tech, as a consultant, so I can't wait to hear the backlash from my own industry.
If you don't like it then don't take the job simple.
Why take a job if you don't like the hours?
There are plenty of M-F 9 to 5 jobs out there with out being on call.
Since the company is lacking in what they say they want to achieve, let your company know you want to get involved in some way to help make your company's goals a reality.
If you don't like it then don't take the job simple.
Why take a job if you don't like the hours?
There are plenty of M-F 9 to 5 jobs out there with out being on call.
Set boundaries, defend your personal time, etc
otherwise
Wrong job or wrong company you work for.
It's not about the job, it's about the expectations regarding your career and how it drives your life.
If I didn't like what I did I wouldn't do it, I have this career by choice. That doesn't mean I have to be ok with the expectation that it dominates my life. I've worked for several companies in the industry, it's not company specific. it's cultural.
I agree with some of what the OP is saying. At my job, you have to constantly pretend you want the next brass ring even if you don't, appear over-eager for a promotion or the next big opportunity, that you're not satisfied with what you're doing and want more, more, more! I have seen perfectly good people feel like they can't work here because they are happy with their job but saying so isn't acceptable, they want to have a job but leave the job at work and spend time with their family after hours, don't want to play the corporate game, etc.
Let me preface this by saying that I like my job. I just want to comment on what I've been observing as a "young professional."
We hear a lot about how society gives women "unfair standards of beauty" by barraging them with pictures of super-thin models. I would submit that the same type of thing is happening in the career world. That is, Americans are being given unrealistic ideas about the role of their vocation in their life and self-esteem.
The following are a few of the phenomenons I've witnessed.
Employees are supposed to feel proud of who they work for. The problem with this is that every career field is a pyramid structure where those who are competitive enough to be in the top 5% get to work at top-tier companies that they feel proud of and the other 95% has to work for low pay at boring companies. It's a recipe for dissatisfaction.
Talk of "Average is over" or "No tolerance for C performers." In other words, there is no longer room for Dilbert-type people in the corporate world. The pudgy guy who works in a cubicle and does an average amount of work can no longer survive.
You're supposed to "enjoy what you do for a living" or "live to work". There is no point in debunking this idea since it's complete nonsense. My ideal job would be a professional tennis player, but if I actually decided to pursue that career then I would make $0/year since no one would sponsor me and I couldn't any tournament prize money.
Needing to "keep your skills up-to-date." I imagine that if you were a union worker in an auto plant in the 1950s or a blacksmith in the year 500 A.D., you didn't have to spend your free time outside of work learning more skills to stay competitive enough to be employed. What's worse is that today "staying competitive" often means paying for overpriced degrees or certifications.
Not every career field is a pyramid structure. There are tons of jobs out there that are not for big companies. There are also jobs that may in a big organization, but that allow for--even require--a certain amount of creativity and personal initiative.
Enjoying what you do for a living, and "living to work" are two separate, unrelated phenomena. Of course everyone should try to find a field and a job they enjoy, otherwise they'll be dying prematurely due to stress of doing something they hate or are bored to death with. That's not "living to work". That's just enjoying what you do.
Keeping your skills up to date isn't about staying competitive. It's about keeping up with tech innovations that are necessary to your job performance, or keeping up with advances in medical knowledge, or the latest law cases you need to know to better serve your clients, and the like. There are also professions that don't require you to update your skills: teaching, for example. International development/foreign aid, personnel management, except for the occasional software update, or whatever.
It's a much bigger world out there than you think, OP. Your topics tend to focus very narrowly, overlooking major aspects of life and reality.
Not sure if women and standards of beauty have anything to do with career expectations.
I don't agree with majority of what you said here is happening in modern "career world", and I also don't think that this remotely describes today's society expectations, but I will try to address what you wrote.
I think you exaggerate the importance of this. You can be proud of who you work for regardless of whether or not your company is "boring" (who decides that anyway?). And you don't have to be proud of it to be successful. For most people not being embarrassed of their company is good enough. Personally, I worked for pretty "boring" companies by any standard, and was still proud that I was doing my work. I think my employers became "cooler" as I advanced in my career: as my skills and experience broadened/deepened, I was able to choose not only a place with good compensation, but also consider the nature of their business and choose the one that appealed to me.
Well, hm, ok. In my industry C performers are usually bad news. So, this is important in my specific area, but maybe not so much in others? I feel like it's still possible to "get away" with an average amount of work, as long as it meets certain standard. What I find more and more is that standards of C performers are far below what companies have as their standard. Isn't businesses with high standard a good thing, in general? So "average" employees have to raise their bar, or they risk losing their job. There is nothing wrong with that.
I do software and information system consulting. It is a horrible job for someone who doesn't enjoy what they do - you can literally go nuts. But we certainly don't live to work. Perhaps, other places you don't have to enjoy your work. It's certainly not a prerequisite for every single modern job.
Well, here is what I find is the root of your complaint. It's not 1950s anymore or 500 A.D., and no amount of complaining will make it so. Keep up with the times, or risk being left behind.
I agree with some of what the OP is saying. At my job, you have to constantly pretend you want the next brass ring even if you don't, appear over-eager for a promotion or the next big opportunity, that you're not satisfied with what you're doing and want more, more, more! I have seen perfectly good people feel like they can't work here because they are happy with their job but saying so isn't acceptable, they want to have a job but leave the job at work and spend time with their family after hours, don't want to play the corporate game, etc.
Along these lines: when companies always preach career development, what often happens is the employees who embrace it start checking out of their current jobs and put their studies and 'goals' first. So you get distracted employees who's primary duties suffer while they focus on their futures. Not good at all.
The main problem I have with the career lifestyle is I am expected to be available at all hours of the day, and I am supposed to "live and breathe" my career, even away from work.
This is for the same employer that then speaks of work life balance.
You shouldn't have to go above and beyond to be successful, it should be a choice that you shouldn't be penalized for if you want to leave your work at 9-5.
And I work in tech, as a consultant, so I can't wait to hear the backlash from my own industry.
Tech is a huge problem with this, especially at smaller employers where you are "the IT guy" and wearing many different hats.
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