I get so bored at all my jobs!?

Question

I have been working since I was 17 at great jobs (with benefits) but nothing has kept my interest yet. I have never lasted even two years at a single job because they bore me... I don't know what's wrong but now in (9 years later) I have track record of instability at previous jobs... I don't know what to do to finally be satisfied!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 1

Thought #1: Target the high tech sector. There is so much change and instability in high tech that you can change jobs often and no one will think anything of it. In fact, even if you keep the same job in high tech, it will change and evolve, so it will seem like a different job a year later (and it will be).

Thought #2: Sign up with a contract agency (temp service). After so many positions, you probably have a wide range of experience, so you would be easy to place, and they would be temporary jobs anyway, so you won't have to feel badly about not sticking with them. SHOP AROUND for contract agencies - get the one with the best pay and benefits (they vary widely).

Thought #3: Don't beat up on yourself. You describe yourself as getting bored easily, but couldn't you equally describe yourself as flexible and someone who enjoys learning and change? There are employers out there who need those characteristics. Go find one.

Answer 2

Two years in a single job - how did you last so long???

In the last 6 years I have had 4 different jobs, and in the last 12 years I have worked for 10 different fortune 500 companies - and I'm well into my 'second career'.

There is NOTHING wrong with you. It sounds like you need to be constantly challenged by new professional growth opportuniites or you get 'bored'. This is a very common problem for people with natural curiosities and strong growth needs (I certainly fit into this category).

So what to do about it? From where I sit there are two options. Interview with different companies in an effort to find a company that will offer you a strong career path. Believe it or not, a job interview is a two way street. YOU need to be as satified with the employer as they are with you. Part of your personal responsibility in the interview process is to specifically ask about growth opportunities. Tell them that you are expecting a job that has growth potential. If they don't seem interested or don't offer it - don't take the job.

The other option - and it is a valid option - is to 'bounce' around from job to job until you get the one you want. I've done that, and it has NOT hurt me at all - I guess at some point if you bounce around too much you 'might' become suspect - but a fact of life is that in today's highly mobile work force the average American only lasts three years in a single job before 'moving on'. I don't think you job hopping will affect you.

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Aha!

Boredom sets in just a moment past the contentment of having achieved a purpose, goal or any other aim.

How to handle?

No matter what your endeavor, project or even your job, one always needs to set BIG THINK type goals. Between the big think and the day-to-day, you can always set smaller, more manageable targets.

So, step back and look at what you are doing. Did you achieve what you set out to do? If so, then you need to re-assess and establish the next target. Achieve that and do it again. I work with business professionals all the time and don't worry, it's easy to overcome once you recognize what's happening.

For example, if one sets out to "get a job," and nothing more, then he will be bored from the moment he sets his foot through the door on day 1. But if this person were to look at this new job and ask himself, "What would challenge me on this post?" he would then have a game to play.

One might have to ask himself that on a daily basis. As one starts to think bigger and bigger, the bored sensation passes, and then it's only a weekly or monthly thing.

Good luck. I hope this helps!

Answer 4

Get used to it. That's why they call it work. Quiting jobs just because your bored is not going to help you get hired later on. Be glad you live in a area where you can change jobs. If you lived where I do you would not get away with that. Not only are the job picking poor. They offer no benefits,the pay scale sucks and there all lousy jobs. So maybe your not as bad off as you think. A lot of people wish they had your little problem.

Answer 5

you are probably doing jobs that don't fit with your capabilities and interests. no matter how good the salary and benefits are, if you're bored, it isn't the right fit for you. who wants to spend 40+ hours/week at a soul-sucking job?

buy or borrow a copy of "What Color Is Your Parachute?" this is a classic job-change manual that is updated each year, and contains lots of aptitude tests to determine the types of jobs you might be best suited for, plus ideas about how to attain them. (you could also see a career counselor but they will charge you tons of $$ and this book is equally effective.)

maybe you should be in business for yourself, or maybe you should be in a customer-facing role like sales instead of a back-office role like accounting. maybe you need a more intellectually stimulating job to keep you challenged. once you find what you love doing, the boredom will disappear.

good luck.

Answer 6

You need to find something have a career in something that you love to do. I like to be on my computer. I don't run a business or anything like that, but I'am signed up with several free programs and get checks from them every month. Check them out.

Answer 7

People suffer at their jobs. You are not expected to be satisfied or happy at your job.... few people are.