It’s okay to go against the trend
Tags: Life Lessons, Happiness, Trends, Lifestyle, Consciousness

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

I have a 9 to 5 job, fixed schedule, a boss who’s telling me what to do and most important I’m working for someone else’s dream and… I like it! Am I broken? Absolutely not.

I spend a lot of time reading about productivity, minimalism, financial freedom and how to live happily. I like it, I find it quite interesting.

Lately I’ve been finding patterns, some phrases or topics many authors in this genre talks about that doesn’t seem to fit with my point of view. They talk about how they left their corporate job and started working for no one but themselves.

I tried that a few years ago but realized it wasn't for me, I didn’t enjoy it so I returned to my 9 to 5. Does that mean I’m doing something wrong? Maybe I can’t be like all the people I enjoy reading? I don’t think so. Here are some reasons why I chose to work for someone else.

Dreams are sticky

One of the main things people who write the articles I’ve been talking about says is that we should stop working for someone else’s dream and start pursuing our own. When I started working at my current job, I was kinda in a dark hole, not knowing what to do with my life, confused and with blurry purposes. When I got the chance to talk with my current boss, he told me about the dream of the founder of the company, the vision and the opportunities he had to make it possible, and it resonated with me, I liked what I was hearing. Dreams can be sticky and maybe I wasn’t there to start the foundations of this dream, but I’m glad now I’m helping building it.

They treat me like a real person, not just an asset

It’s well known in a company people are assets. Well, I think thats wrong, in a company people are just people. I’ve always been working at startups, thats my gig, and maybe in huge corporations they do treat their employees like assets (I can’t tell) but I found in my current job that this isn't the case. They frequently ask me how I’ve been feeling, if somethings bothers me, if I need something. They encourage us to take vacations, take 20 minutes breaks during the day. Even with the pandemic and a fully remote job, they try to encourage the connection between teams.

They value my work and believe in me

I’ve been working for a few months now, of course Ive been trying my best and people didn't hesitate on recognizing that. Every 1 on 1 meeting Ive had, Ive been told that my work has full-fill their expectations and they are happy to have me in their team. Of course this helps my self esteem and keep me wanting to be better and better every day. Positive reinforcement is something that everyone needs time to time.

They give me what is fair

I know my experience, I know what I can offer and when this startup hired me they were offering less than I know I worth. We agree that I will have a three months contract and after that they will evaluate my performance and readjust my benefits. That time passed and, as they said, they readjust without second thoughts. Of course it’s not all about the money, I have life insurance too, personal days off, flexible schedule and some more minor benefits. My advise here is, don’t be afraid to tell you are worthy, believe in yourself.