I’m caught in my work worth era
Labels provide a sense of familiarity.
Doctor. Lawyer.
President. Intern.
MBA. Undergraduate.
Labels are often coupled with some form of work, making it easier to condense broad concepts into more comprehensible language.
This language eventually seeps into our natural vocabulary turning into our way of life. It becomes a measure of skill and performance, of continuous growth and development.
The desire to excel in what we've come to learn.
The obsession to be more and do more.
The eventual climb towards what’s next.
It is only a function of time when the work we do eventually makes us feel like we are of value and worth. The role, the responsibilities, and the accumulated recognition altogether makes us feel like we must be doing something right. Work provides some form of validation that we have some use in this world.
But when moments come when work is over and a bigger slice of reality hits, we naturally find ourselves in question, “Is this what I really want to do?”
“What do I like to do anyway?”
“What am I even good at?”
Once we find ourselves stumbling to find the answers, three tendencies come about:
We induce self-blame. We beat ourselves up. We gaslight our own identity, questioning our purpose. Time should have made us wiser and more discerning, but why have we not pieced together some form of clarity and coherence? We convince ourselves we’re not yet ready to take any form of action because after all, we can’t even answer the basic questions that should come so easily.
We work even more. We brush away the thoughts. Some days we judge them as trivial, some days we admit that it can be too daunting for a response. After all, why do we need to know the answers? Work fills up our days, provides what it needs to, and makes life move. That in itself is enough.
We do the bare minimum. We simply do what needs to be done, which isn’t a bad thing. Some burn out, others completely stop functioning. Things don’t make sense but stopping or leaving isn’t an option — so we float.
Tough.
Maybe it’s not exactly work that daunts us. After all, work didn’t do anything but exist. Maybe it’s the question of self-identity.
Our role in our line of work can feel secure but to view ourselves outside that box can look like a looming blank canvas.
And maybe that’s what needs the bigger work.
It is true that the work we do reflects the things we do but it doesn’t always define the person that we are. Work can be a passion for others, a means to an end for some. Some talk about their work starry-eyed with limitless zest while some view it as an instrument engrained in life.
Whatever we piece together for our own stories, know that there is no universal answer deemed correct. The path made for us is meant to be discovered through our own unique experiences and a step towards recognizing our worth is acknowledging the strength we have displayed to get to where we are now, regardless of what that picture looks like.
And though society and time will remind us every now and then that we may be wrong, it is always our decision to stand ground.
You are a product of your achievements but you are not bound by your achievements. You are marked by your career but you are not limited to that person on that piece of paper.
You are you — never static, ever-changing, always evolving.
And after all is said and done, your worth is not measured by the work that you do but the person you choose to be.
