Dude, part of me having a “quarter-life crisis” is the fear of monotony. Right now, being a student, my life is fairly spontaneous and fairly eventful. It was even more eventful in undergraduate; endless fun. As I get closer to graduation, everything is getting realllll serious. Internships, interviews, butt-kissing, I’m expected to super-professional ALL THE TIME. Can’t be myself without being corrected. Some of my friends who have already graduated and are in the workforce say that the money is good, but they barely have time to spend it because they spend most of their time at work. They complain that when they finally get home from work, their busted and often hit the sack. If they try to go out after work, it seems like it’s no time before they have to head home. The weekends go by too fast, there aren’t enough hours in the day and vacation time is few and far between. Does it matter what shift you work? Nope. Not according to them. From their perspective, 40 hours a week ALWAYS translates into 8 hours asleep, 8 hours at work, and 6 hours to yourself ( the other 2hrs are spent getting ready for and driving to work). 6 hours goes by fast (and you get EVEN LESS than 6 hours to yourself if you have children).
I imagine that things can get pretty mundane when your schedule is that predictable and repetitive. One of my friends posted a Facebook status that said “School, work, church….over and over and over… which is why I’m bored out of my mind with life…”
Among the other complaints about the daily grind is the shortening social circle. Everyone you knew before you got in the workforce is either in another state or just as busy as you are. Everyone at work you either have nothing in common with or there’s a limit to how close you can get to them because of professional ethics. Speaking of “professional ethics,” remember when I mentioned having to be super-professional ALL THE TIME? Well, if you spend most of your time awake at work, then that means you spend most of your time being the “professional,” you and not yourself. How suffocating and frustrating. What kind of life is that?
Now, the remedy most people offer for avoiding monotony in work is “finding something you enjoy.” But how many people REALLY get to do that? My biggest fear is that no matter how hard I try, I’m going to end up with a job where I dread getting up in the morning and I’m bored to tears with life. Ever see “I Think I Love My Wife” with Chris Rock? I’m afraid of being his kind of bored LOL. Ever see the film “Office Space”? I’m afraid of feeling that kind of suffocated and unhappy without any relief. I’m going to go insane! For me, that’s what turning 25 equates to: a cubicle and/or office prison with a jerk for a boss (i.e. Lumberg from “Office Space”) and no time for myself. Yeah, I’ll have way more money than I have now and that would be great, but at what cost? I would like to believe that I’d be “different” and I won’t end up in that situation, but I don’t know. I don’t know what my chances are at breaking the mold and LOVING my job while I make money. I’m so scared that I’ll end up with a boring career/life, that I wrote a song about it. Most of my friends say it hits right on the nail and they share my same feelings. I feel like pulling a “Van Wilder” (yet another movie that reflects my career crisis) and keeping myself from graduating so I won’t have to become a “real adult.” Most people are excited about graduating and getting their hands dirty in counseling. Me, I’m like “Get me outta here!!” Can’t I just be 21 again and be 21 forever? I guess I see why there’s a chain of clothing stores called “Forever 21” and not “Forever 25.”
I imagine that things can get pretty mundane when your schedule is that predictable and repetitive. One of my friends posted a Facebook status that said “School, work, church….over and over and over… which is why I’m bored out of my mind with life…”
Among the other complaints about the daily grind is the shortening social circle. Everyone you knew before you got in the workforce is either in another state or just as busy as you are. Everyone at work you either have nothing in common with or there’s a limit to how close you can get to them because of professional ethics. Speaking of “professional ethics,” remember when I mentioned having to be super-professional ALL THE TIME? Well, if you spend most of your time awake at work, then that means you spend most of your time being the “professional,” you and not yourself. How suffocating and frustrating. What kind of life is that?
Now, the remedy most people offer for avoiding monotony in work is “finding something you enjoy.” But how many people REALLY get to do that? My biggest fear is that no matter how hard I try, I’m going to end up with a job where I dread getting up in the morning and I’m bored to tears with life. Ever see “I Think I Love My Wife” with Chris Rock? I’m afraid of being his kind of bored LOL. Ever see the film “Office Space”? I’m afraid of feeling that kind of suffocated and unhappy without any relief. I’m going to go insane! For me, that’s what turning 25 equates to: a cubicle and/or office prison with a jerk for a boss (i.e. Lumberg from “Office Space”) and no time for myself. Yeah, I’ll have way more money than I have now and that would be great, but at what cost? I would like to believe that I’d be “different” and I won’t end up in that situation, but I don’t know. I don’t know what my chances are at breaking the mold and LOVING my job while I make money. I’m so scared that I’ll end up with a boring career/life, that I wrote a song about it. Most of my friends say it hits right on the nail and they share my same feelings. I feel like pulling a “Van Wilder” (yet another movie that reflects my career crisis) and keeping myself from graduating so I won’t have to become a “real adult.” Most people are excited about graduating and getting their hands dirty in counseling. Me, I’m like “Get me outta here!!” Can’t I just be 21 again and be 21 forever? I guess I see why there’s a chain of clothing stores called “Forever 21” and not “Forever 25.”
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