Dudley Dawson writes the wildly popular and very funny Examiner column "Life in the Cubicle" which, among other things, is a survival guide for those whose jobs provide very little (or no) personal satisfaction.
But how do you know when you've reached the point where you hate your job-or any other aspect of your life-so much that's it's time to make a drastic change? For the most part, change is a good thing.
"He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery."
- Harold Wilson, former British Prime Minister
That's true, Harold, but then there's also the truism about jumping from the frying pan into the fire.
My family and I made the most dramatic change I could ever imagine when we left New Jersey and moved to Arizona on little more than a whim.
Dudley Dawson has changed jobs numerous times, but has never moved from the area when he was born.
As we are about to enter into a new year and a new decade, it's a good time to reflect on the question that The Clash so eloquently asked, "Should I stay or should I go?"
Dudley and I recently sat down to discuss this topic and compare our experiences. His story is below.
He also interrogated me and that interview can be found on his column by clicking here.
Susan: How long have you lived in your current location and been at your current job?
Dudley: I've lived in the Twin Cities my entire life. It's a great place to live, though having lived only here, I guess I have no legitimate argument. I've been at my current job for just under two years. I've been working for nine years. I've only had one job for more than two years, purely because I've never had a job that I liked. The only reason I stayed at one of my jobs for four years was due to having a fantastic work posse.
Susan: Do you consider yourself a slacker?
Dudley: It depends on what your definition of slacker is. My definition…is often different from what people think of as a slacker. Many people simply define a slacker as a lazy person who doesn't do anything. But it isn't realistic to assume that a slacker does nothing. I do everything that is asked of me in a very efficient manner so I have more time to do things that are considered ‘lazy'. If you do it right away, you have more time to be lazy later (as long as you don't inform everyone that the task is done). More often than not, slackers get more stuff done than do motivated people because they are purely focused on necessary tasks. Therefore, I am a slacker.
Susan: What advice do you have for those who would like to run away?
Dudley: I would tell them to run away as fast as possible. However, it's easier said than done. I am a living example of that.
Susan: If you've never run away, what is keeping you from doing so?
Dudley: I guess I have run away; I just never left the metro area I live in and I stayed on the same job path my entire career. I run away from jobs on a fairly regular basis. If I don't like my job, or if they aren't paying me enough, I leave fairly quick. If everyone was willing to leave their job if they hated it and grow a pair, we'd all be making a lot more money. The one thing that has kept me from leaving my current career path is the fear of having to go back to school. I can't pay attention to something for more than 7.5 minutes.
Susan: What was the worst job you've ever had?
Dudley: The worst job I've ever had was delivering mail for the U.S. Postal Service as a temp during the summer between my junior and senior year of college. It paid well for a college summer job, but it was miserable for several reasons:
a) The postal cars have heaters that pump on your legs and do not turn off. Profuse sweating was not uncommon. Delivering a package to someone's door is not fun when you are bathing in your own sweat. Stay away from light gray t-shirts.
(Susan's note: Stay away from this summer job completely if you live in the Phoenix area).
b) Working on Saturday mornings. Not having a two day weekend is something I cannot handle. Without a two day weekend, you really have nothing to live for. Also, I had a tendency to drink a lot on Friday nights and it resulted in very little sleep heading into my arrival at 5:30 on Saturday morning to sort Playboys and People magazines. To this day, I despise periodicals.
c) Mind numbing work. Delivering the mail wasn't so bad. Sorting the mail was pure torture.
I would like to apologize to the five mailboxes that I destroyed on my first day driving from the right side of the vehicle. I would also like to apologize to all those who had mail that accidentally went down the sewer when it fell out of my hands during rainstorms.
Susan: Is happiness for you defined as what you do or how you do it?
Dudley: Good question. I've never thought about it. I guess it has to be how you do it. For instance, you could have sex all day long, but if your partner isn't good at it, you're left with very little joy, or at the very least, finishing it yourself.
Susan: What is your dream job?
Dudley: My dream job is to write a book or movie script that makes millions of dollars and I never work another day in my life. Some people say I should pursue it and I should "run away". What they don't realize is that all of my pain and anguish of working in the corporate world is just research for the ultimate goal.
Susan: What would be your perfect day?
Dudley: The day I decide to stop working.
A big thank you to Dudley for chatting with me about this. And for those who decide to stick it out (whatever "it" is) even if they hate it, life will be less miserable if you follow Dudley's "Life in the Cubicle Examiner" column.
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