Do you find yourself thinking you’d be happier doing something other than work everyday? Or do you perhaps hate your job and dread going to work everyday?
With the world moving so fast, we often take what we have for granted and our gratitude list slowly starts to shrink. But there’s actually a lot about our jobs we can be thankful for—even if we work long hectic hours and “don’t have a life”.
For this year’s International Week of Happiness at Work (20 Sept – 24 Sept), let’s be grateful about these 10 benefits we have as a result of having a job!
- A way to earn a living and provide for family
The very fundamental reason why people work is for survival, so if you have work to do and income to support your loved ones, that’s something to be grateful for! After all, having a job is the reason we can afford the finer things in life, go on holidays, get married, buy a house, send kids to school and hire a maid.
- Something productive to do with our lives
Can you imagine spending the next 40 years of your life doing nothing as a couch potato? While that sounds appealing at first, it’s actually a nightmare. After going to school for the first 20 years of your life and learning all about the world, you just…sit there without a goal to work towards? Your job gives you something worthwhile to do on a daily basis and it can serve as a springboard for bigger dreams!
- You are talented
If you have a job, that means you have qualified for something. It doesn’t matter if you don’t like what you’re doing, you’re an essential part of society and your skills are valuable—that’s why you’re getting paid to do what you do! Having work to do shows that you have talents and abilities that you can be grateful for.
- Opportunities to make friends
Before we made friends at work, we made friends at school. And just like school, we get to interact with all sorts of people at work, in the office, during lunch break, and at company social activities. Today, think of all the people at work you’re on good terms with and be grateful that your job has given you the opportunity to meet them.
- Learning new skills and mastering old ones
It can be something as simple as Excel shortcuts or how to use the Nespresso machine at work. It can be something as critical as making a successful pitch or starting your own business. The best way to learn is always on-the-job, so be grateful for the skills you acquire at work and those that you get the opportunity to develop and master as part of your job.
- Broader horizons
“Work” is “the real world” we tell the younger generation they’ll experience in the future. Perhaps your own parents have talked about “the real world” to you before. At work is where you learn more about what the world is truly like and get to know how other people think. It’s also where we get the opportunity to understand the different lifestyles and experiences of those you work with/for.
- Getting life advice from your seniors
The perks of getting a job is more than just money for retirement but also life hacks and advice from our senior colleagues and bosses. Who are the people at work you approach for tips and wise insights? Today is a good day to thank them for helping you out!
- Treasuring your holidays more
Holidays are very precious to us because they’re rare. If we spend 5 days every week playing games and lazing around and 2 days a week at work, we might not treasure holidays as much. It is because there are bad days that the good days feel so good!
- Company benefits
Almost every company offers some form of employee benefits, whether it is the new coffee machine in the pantry, tasty chicken rice from the coffee shop downstairs, or medical coverage and a 13th month bonus. Let’s be grateful for all these little things in life!
- You’re becoming a better person everyday
If you’re working everyday, you’re also becoming a better person everyday. Every situation in life is a learning experience and that includes the day to day routine at your workplace. Each day that passes, is a day in which you’ve learned something new or achieved something small. All these days are like droplets of water that make up the ocean—that is you!