Things that Make You Feel Bad at Work

Our jobs play a huge part in our lives. To some, their job is their life. Like any other aspect of life, our jobs bring bad days to our years. Here are the reasons for mine:

1. What work-life balance?

In my current job, I extend work hours almost all the time. I'm usually the last to leave the office at 7pm--two hours after the official time out. That's cos 9 hours is not enough for this sole communications officer who wears different hats--writer, graphic & layout artist, website content manager, Facebook administrator, photographer, events manager, purchase requester, etc. Just last week, I worked on weekends. Worse, the call time on Sunday was at 2 am. So yeah, what 9-to-5 job? What work-life balance? It sucks that this is not a thing in our company.

2. Office politics

I'm a really silent worker. I don't brag about my accomplishments nor do I complain about being overworked. In my mind, I'm being paid here to do my job and that is to deliver quality output when it is needed. It's just unfair when office politics makes you the most worthless person in the workplace. After getting migraine for working on two major events and not enjoying your weekend, you'll get the "wala kang ginagawa" comment. Thanks to people who do a good job of complaining about their responsibilities and to people who make a living through bad-mouthing employees who actually do their jobs.

3. The "thankless" nature of the job

We were once told that being in the Marketing Department is a thankless job. I personally think that is bullshit. Yes, marketing people should be aggressive and pro-active, but that doesn't mean that they are robots who don't need affirmation and appreciation. We're not demanding recognition and rewards for our little successes, we know we are paid for these. But to say we don't deserve to be given pats in the back is just plain arrogant and heartless.

4. There will always be favorites

I don't have a problem if I am not a favorite. That's okay. As long as my employer is satisfied with my contributions to the company, that's the only thing that should matter. I just don't think it's fair when the favorites get babied and favored by the boss. One sumbong and their lives are better, responsibilities lighter. Oh well. But what is fair in this Earth? Right?

5. "Pwede na" standards in recruitment

In one of our meetings, I was disappointed to hear this: "Di naman kailangang magaling at maalam sa paglalagyang departamento. Matuturuan naman yan." That's exactly why skill mismatch is prominent in our workplace and you see people being transferred from one position to another all the time (i.e., re-organization, restructuring). The bad effect of this is that expectations are not met and deliverables are also substandard.

6. Overworked, underpaid

People who can't relate to this are very lucky! My next mission in life is to scratch this off my "Things that Make You Feel Bad at Work" list.