Becoming Complacent

Jen Post:

I never wanted to be the person who worked too many jobs in too few of years. I always felt like that made me look like I was never satisfied, didn’t like what I did, or I was one that “doesn’t play well with others.” Now I look at my resume and in my professional career, I have held four jobs in the past five years.  So much for those thoughts…

But one of reasons I left those jobs is that I become complacent. I stopped caring about the business or how I was doing. I didn’t want to improve and I didn’t want to challenge myself anymore, and I wasn’t being challenged. I was just stagnant. I went to work, came home, watched TV, and went to bed. I’ve worked in many different settings for the career I have chosen (brain injuries, rehab, geriatric, chemical dependency, mental health, even community settings), and in each one I find myself leaving a job with a stale taste.

So is it the career path I chose or the company I’m working for? Is it me? Am I just sluggish and lazy?

The newest adventure I’ve come upon in mental health and chemical dependency really is taking a toll on me, as I don’t think I’ve had to push myself this hard in my career path to really push for what I want and stand up for what I think is right. I’ve never used my voice this much as a professional and I’ve also never been more proud of myself. I’ve never had more patients thank me or want to know who I am. I’ve never remembered more patients’ names or want to be on the unit so much to help the nurses and behavioral health workers.

I’m not really sure where I will be working 5 years from now. I’m done letting myself be complacent and giving up on being the best I can. I feel like I need to start giving a damn about how others look at me, and mainly, how I look at myself. What I do in my life is important, and if I don’t believe that, how am I supposed to make others see it?

-Jen