Note: Hard-edge message first, then why it’s ok
Life is hard. Parenting and becoming an adult are hard. Jobs are hard, too.
There is no perfectly-joyful-always-wonderful-I-love-it-every-hour job. 20-40% of any job is necessary but not joyful. 20-40% of your hours you’ll be battling boredom, fatigue, a desire to be distracted, and reluctance to do what needs to be done.
This is true for everyone. In fact, the larger your range of responsibilities, the bigger risks you manage, the more likely that you only find joy and satisfaction in 10-20% of the job.
So don’t beat yourself up when you have an off hour or day. Recognize this not as “what’s wrong with this job, or me?” but rather “part of the work, and I can do it.” Don’t give in to excuses and whining. We can all up our game, improve our craft, develop better competency, even in the face of the “bleahs.”
You can also watch for this in the people around you.
Adopt this strategy: The end-result value is worth the difficulty and annoyances. The 20% result dwarfs the 80% less pleasant and troublesome. It’s good that your job is hard.
