10:53 PM, 05.01.99
WHY MY JOB DOESN'T SUCK   < <  rants  <  the_board   ||

I was thinking the other day, as I braved 5:45 PM traffic near the intersection of Hwy. 54 and Hwy. 55 (which is vaguely like braving Pamplona Streets during the running of the bulls for those of you who don't live and work near RTP...)... and I was thinking about my job.

For those of you that know me, you probably know that I just got a new job. You probably know far more than you want to about said new job, as I'm just a bit excited by the work. Sorry about that. Really.

But, honestly, this change has made me start to think -- think about the jobs I've been dissatisfied with, the ones I did enjoy, and the differences between them. What is it that makes a good job? What kind of environment is it that excites me, makes me feel the way I do now about my work -- that it's not just to pay the bills, but something to make a *career*? And what can I, as an employee or maybe (someday down the road) as someone else's supervisor, do to make a work environment both challenging and low-stress, friendly and warm but professional?

And then, of course, I about passed out from the wholesomely self-content thoughts running through my brain. This are *rants*... I'm supposed to be *bitter*! *Ahem* On to ranting...

So, I reformulated my theory -- I started to think of ways that jobs COULD suck -- the *absence* of which makes the working world palatable enough that its inhabitants don't snap whist braving work-week traffic. (Let's face it, we'd all rather be independantly wealthy and not have to work at all -- I mean, no one ever says "Gee, I'm tired travelling the world in my personal Lear jet exploring foreign cultures and living in the lap of luxury.")

So, here's what I came up with... 6 things (I was going for 10, but I got bored half-way through...) that can make a job really SUCK:

Now, those aren't the only things that can suck about work, but they're some of the bigger ones. And I will say that one or two crummy co-workers don't often spoil the whole bunch, as long as they're not part of your every-day experience. But, on the whole, if you read that and didn't think, "Wow, this sounds like $co-worker!", then you're probably feelin' pretty groovy.

Then there's the perks -- there are some really cool things that just make work rock. I know -- and you know -- that money is usually the biggest perk of all. Whether it's in the form of a nice, fat salary, a good-sized hourly wage hike or a spiffy year-end profit-margin bonus, as long as it's cash, it's perfect.

But don't overlook the more reserved displays of appreciation. Some of my favorite perks have included free web space, a nice, stable (everlasting!) e-mail address, nifty t-shirts (especially when you're allowed -- nay, encouraged -- to wear the tees to work with jeans...) and cool 'promotional' toys. Never overestimate the value of a good toy. Other more practical (but still appreciated) benefits of the good old '9 to 5' world include catered yum-yums (gotta love the inventor of the 'business lunch') and the occasional office party/networking shindig.

Looking at the ratio of morons to money to perks to pains, my job pretty much rocks. How about you?

WHY MY JOB DOESN'T SUCK   < <  rants  <  the_board   ||