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I worked with this fellow who told me about his humble beginnings where everyone had to work so hard in his family and they were still poor. He decided to go to college and told me he dreamed of one of those cushy jobs. He said he finally got his wish. He worked in a very large IT department for a major insurance company. His assigned work there each week was something which he was easily able to complete before lunch on Monday. For the rest of the time he had zero to do and zero access to anything to learn more, because he was only allowed access to that part of the system to do his work. Management didn't seem to care he didn't have much to do. He ended up taking 2 hour lunches and spending time walking around department stores during work hours after lunch.
He said he hated it there and started having health problems with his stomach because of the stress of this. Getting up early in the morning, putting on a suit to go hang out in the office with no real work to do for most of the time there. Not even meetings.
He found another job that kept him very busy, but he said he was so much happier. He told me he realized the dream of a cushy job was entirely misguided.
I worked with this fellow who told me about his humble beginnings where everyone had to work so hard in his family and they were still poor. He decided to go to college and told me he dreamed of one of those cushy jobs. He said he finally got his wish. He worked in a very large IT department for a major insurance company. His assigned work there each week was something which he was easily able to complete before lunch on Monday. For the rest of the time he had zero to do and zero access to anything to learn more, because he was only allowed access to that part of the system to do his work. Management didn't seem to care he didn't have much to do. He ended up taking 2 hour lunches and spending time walking around department stores during work hours after lunch.
He said he hated it there and started having health problems with his stomach because of the stress of this. Getting up early in the morning, putting on a suit to go hang out in the office with no real work to do for most of the time there. Not even meetings.
He found another job that kept him very busy, but he said he was so much happier. He told me he realized the dream of a cushy job was entirely misguided.
If you can take two hour lunches with no real responsibility, sounds like this position needs to be eliminated entirely. Never ceases to me amaze me how quick companies are to get rid of positions where people actually work and bring value but will gladly keep on countless layers of pointless management positions or these paper pushing up no responsibility type jobs where people can take 2-3 hour lunches
If you are one of those people who can keep yourself busy with interests outside of work, that type of job would be a dream.
My job is pretty cushy. I have a quota at work, but no one micromanages me as long as I make the quota and I can work from home 3 days a week. I work 7.5 hour days and the work is not that challenging. I have tons of free time outside the job to pursue my own interests and stay busy. The only problem with it is that there are limited promotion opportunities, but for what it is, it is a pretty decent job.
If you are one of those people who can keep yourself busy with interests outside of work, that type of job would be a dream.
Unless you had a job as I described and experienced it, I highly doubt it. I'm sure to someone working retail dealing with the public all day, this sounds like a dream job, but to actually experience it is another thing.
If you can take two hour lunches with no real responsibility, sounds like this position needs to be eliminated entirely. Never ceases to me amaze me how quick companies are to get rid of positions where people actually work and bring value but will gladly keep on countless layers of pointless management positions or these paper pushing up no responsibility type jobs where people can take 2-3 hour lunches
It was an IT job. He had to be highly skilled to do the work, but they didn't have enough of that sort of work for him to do. So someone did a cost analysis and decided it was economically sound to keep someone in the job for the 4 hours or so he did a week.
You also have to look at the management structure. If someone is into power base building, and are aggressive about upper management giving them the budget they want, they can do things like this and no one looks at the details.
That was stressful for the person in the OP? lol I don't think that person really understands what a stressful job is.
It wasn't like he could only come in for 4 hours a week and the rest he could go fishing. He had to show up to the office and hang out there.
The real stress isn't from working, it is from not accomplishing what you wish to do. You can have a lot of work to do, and it can be enjoyable because you are able to accomplish things. It is stressful when you can't accomplish anything. This is why people who are unemployed have stress, even if they are able to pay their bills. I have a friend who took early retirement and was going crazy with having nothing to do he told me. It was more stressful than the job he had.
Remember, in some places they punish employees by taking work and responsibility away from. No one wants to be put off in a corner with nothing to do. This guy's job wasn't intended as a punishment, but it might as well have been.
My job is pretty cushy. I have a quota at work, but no one micromanages me as long as I make the quota and I can work from home 3 days a week. I work 7.5 hour days and the work is not that challenging. I have tons of free time outside the job to pursue my own interests and stay busy. The only problem with it is that there are limited promotion opportunities, but for what it is, it is a pretty decent job.
But you are doing more than 4 hours of work a week aren't you? Your situation doesn't sound the same.
If you are one of those people who can keep yourself busy with interests outside of work, that type of job would be a dream.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rummage
Unless you had a job as I described and experienced it, I highly doubt it. I'm sure to someone working retail dealing with the public all day, this sounds like a dream job, but to actually experience it is another thing.
I DO have a job like that.
I work in accounting. I am mainly busy during the first week of the month doing period end types of work. Those who work in accounting knows what I mean...
The rest of the time, I am busy for like 2 hours day. Fortunately, I am not one of those people who feels the need to be all about work.
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