Entertaining Sanity

I publicly proclaimed (via twitter) the following 2010 New Year's Resolution:

"I will no longer entertain people's delusions,
even if they are willing to pay me to do it."

It's only the last day of January and I've lost business over this resolution this year. Some people might consider this a failure (losing business), but I consider it a success.

Psychology in the Workplace

I had a great phone conversation with a friend in Washington state yesterday. We talked about a lot of things, including this. I almost jumped out of my skin when she referred to "family of origin" issues in the work place. Someone else knows what I'm talking about! (I guess it's not just us social work types that notice these patterns.)

Consulting is One Way to Find the Exit Sign

Forgive me for putting a big picture of myself right here, but there's something I love about this picture (hint: it's a word in the background).

People bring an incredible amount of psychological baggage with them to work every day. If you can avoid the worst offenders, great. But what if your boss is one of these people? As I like to say, "lawd ha' mercy."

Consulting is not an easy answer. I still need to negotiate endless unwritten (and often unreasonable) expectations (more about that in future posts). However, if you're willing to give up health insurance (yes, that is a big 'ask') and the delusion of 'job security' (um, if you haven't figured this out by now, it simply doesn't exist), you are in a position to regain a level of self-respect you may not realize you've somehow lost through your experiences in the traditional 'workplace.'

Retired

I am thirty-something, a few years shy of being 40 years old. I decided to go ahead and officially retire. Now. Actually, I retired a few months ago.

I never really wanted to have a job. I never wanted to get married. I couldn't see myself having children. From my vantage point in the suburbs of Flint, Michigan, I saw absolutely nothing I wanted to replicate.

My parents struggled to send me to college. With a good education, I could get a good job. I, on the other hand, was incredibly relieved to find that college wasn't anywhere near as brain-numbing as high school.

I briefly considered getting a degree in computer science. In high school, I programmed better and faster than my peers. On an Algebra final exam, I proved I could solve algebraic equations better and faster than any of my peers at the University of Michigan-Flint. But, alas, I found my true love: sociology. Introduction to Sociology, Social Stratification, Urban Sociology, Race and Ethnicity...

I was in heaven.

My parents were mortified. (What can you DO with a degree in sociology?! )

I responded by saying, "I can get a PhD and be a college professor". I'll never forget the response I got to that statement. I felt like I was 5 years old and had just announced I was going to be a fireman when I grew up. (Neither of my parents ever completed a BA or BS degree. Apparently me attending graduate school seemed about as realistic a possibility as a trip to Pluto. Now might be a good time to mention that I have always been the "black sheep" of the family, breaking all of the rules.)

With all the talk of web 2.0 and health 2.0, I'm surprised we don't hear more about "work 2.0." What is work 2.0, anyway? I'm not completely sure, but I do know that it's probably similar to "unwork" (think "unconference") in the sense that hierarchy is considered an antiquated concept. Think cooperation. Mutual respect. Not what can you do for me, but what can we do together?

On that note, I am pleased to announce my retirement from "work 1.0."

Slow Start

As with many blogs or other internet advenetures, they often get off to a slow start. You might create a blog, then be too petrified or busy to write the first (definitely the hardest) post. Then couple months later, you write a post. The guilt inspires you to write another one. Next thing you know, you forgot you ever started a blog and feel kind of pathetic as you contemplate resurrecting that pitiful blog you started a year ago...

Cheers to new beginnings! Keep plugging along. Don't quit quitting (if you're a smoker). And keep starting, even if you feel like a slacker.