Wonderland 2024

I-2. UNimportant Things

PROMPT ▼

As the new year begins, consider at least one thing you considered too ‘important’ in the past. What makes it so ‘unimportant’ now? (<500 words)

I've definitely considered my job far too "important" in the past. For years, I would work really long hours and sacrifice almost everything else (time with friends and family, sleep, personal hobbies and interests, etc.) in an effort to prove that I was a dedicated employee and devoted to my job. I would volunteer for all kinds of extra responsibilities with each employer, to show that I was a team player and dedicated to the company's success.

And while I still think it's important to have a good work ethic and take pride in the job you do, I've learned that very few employers reward that kind of "going above and beyond" behavior and, in many cases, just use it to set higher standards and expectations. Despite being told by nearly every employer I've ever worked for that I'm a "rockstar" employee, I've still been laid off three times, the minute the company's "bottom line" benefitted from it. I've been passed over for promotions and raises more times than I can count, with the reasoning, "It's not that you don't deserve it; we just aren't in a position to give that to you right now."

My parents came from a generation where their employers often took care of them. They could count on working somewhere for years, even decades, with regular job growth and management that would often look to protect them against corporate cost-cutting unless it was a really dire situation. I come from a generation where, no matter how good a job you do and no matter how well liked and respected you are, you're one bad fiscal quarter away from having your employer turn your life completely upside down.

As a result, I've put a lot less value in exhausting myself for my employer. I'll do the best job that I can for them, but proving what a good worker I am by going so far above and beyond that other areas of my life suffer is definitely UNimportant to me now. I work hard enough to give my employer good value for the money they pay me in salary, and now I invest more in the areas of my life that matter; namely my family and my personal interests that bring me joy and satisfaction.


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(379 words)