I have never had a job that improved my mental health, not once. And I am actually very privileged in general. Jobs have been net negative for my health, even with regular therapy.
I painted in college and it was a very satisfying to finish a job and look on the completed work as you were packing everything up to move on to the next one and I worked a product development job and getting your product working and going up for sale was similar. contract work could be like that to as it had a definitive goal. Unfortunately most other jobs did not have those defined accomplishment times.
Yeah, that feeling accomplishing something is really important. Been working for a product company since June 2024 when I finished a project I actually felt like I made something tangible, unlike in most companies I worked in, where accomplishments are really hazy and undefined. Today you are working on one thing and tomorrow on another thing.
yeah hazy and undefined has been my location since 2010. Did make this slick backup system for a small company that got me jazzed. Oh man I used to work in a research lab at a univeristy and we had this regular cadence of shows plus each grant pretty much resulted in us putting together a system that had a purpose and was shown off at the shows. so fullfilling.
I’ve never found the correct amount of working for my mental health. Not working has been very bad for it, but so has working. What I really want is like 20 hours a week doing something that I believe improves the world
Wouldn’t that be ideal? Working for your goals along with working for your needs. Problem is jobs tend to take away a lot of energy from us and that is by design.
I have but only for the length of the initial honeymoon period. Once the new and shiny wears off, every job has been a net drag on my mental well-being or at best- inconsequential to my overall mental health.
In hindsight, had I stuck out the ones that felt inconsequential for a little longer, then I’m sure those would have been a drag as well
Arts and crafts are a net negative? Ouch
Never do any art again, got it. Thanks, CNN!
Work makes us feel like we have purpose because capitalism has deprived us of the opportunity to fill that void with anything that actually enriches us as humans. If we’re not working, we feel worthless because that status quo mindset has been forced into reality, while things like homelessness have been criminalized, and everything else has been pushed to the redline of profitability.
I love working as much as I love music and gaming (my hobbies). By this I mean that I love doing the thing that is officially my profession. What I don’t like is dealing with the humans in or around what I do for a living. Humans suck. I also hate having to work. Tasks are not nearly as fun when you have the constant threat of homelessness, starvation, and unchecked illness with probable death hanging over your head.
I make things in my spare time so I don’t tell people to go to hell during my work time. These things are not quite the same.
So doing work and having a work does the same thing for mental health? Who knew.
I mean fiddling and making crafts is some kind of baseline interest for humans.
