🍹 Job Juice

H: You never want to seem ungrateful, but sometimes, even your first-world problems deserve to see the light of day.

L: I don't have any problems, remember?

H: Of course, you don't. You're unreal and abnormal. But the average person kinda needs problems while simultaneously wanting none.

L: What problems have you recently encountered that warrant this waxing poetic?

H: I was thinking about how we struggle so hard to get jobs we'll end up hating or being bored of. Then you wake up every day to do your job to afford to live, even if what you do is sucking the life out of you, on and on and on, until they don't need you anymore.

L: Sheesh. Maybe the robots should take everyone's jobs after all.

H: They'll start with the bottom-rung ones, which will suck for the humans who do those jobs, for sure. But the increased efficiency and productivity will reduce the prices of goods and services, creating more disposable income and more demand, which-

L: Leads to the creation of new jobs to meet that demand.

H: -leads to the creation of new-- Yes, as has been the case with every new technological advancement since the dawn of time.

L: Maybe the new jobs will result in people feeling less dissatisfied at work.

H: Maybe, but that transition won't be painless. And you can bet it won't favour those completely opposed to the proliferation of these technologies.

L: People will also have to learn how to pivot from what they're used to doing to remain relevant and, well-- paid.

H: That's one of the pain points that'll emerge. All while trying to outpace the superintelligent AI that apparently wants to kill us.

L: You couldn't just stick to the good news, could you?

H: There are several sides to any argument; this guy thinks AI literally has bloodlust.

L: I don't really catch his drift.

H: Could be the Unabomber vibes he's giving off.

L: Back to the work dissatisfaction element, I'm sure many people are doing what they love for a living.

H: "Many" might be a bit of a stretch, but I can speak for myself when I say that turning a hobby into a career, while initially appealing and even romantic, gets old fast.

L: Don't tell me the words aren't speaking back to you like they used to.

H: This new post format is enough evidence of that. Writing used to be a by-the-way pastime for me. When I realised there were myriad ways to monetise that passion, I was delighted to explore them. Having been down that road for years, it feels more mechanical than enjoyable.

L: You're probably just frustrated about the pay.

H: The pay increased progressively, but that didn't result in me springing out of bed every morning excited to pen the next article or news post.

L: Explains why you started Kessentials.

H: Guilty as charged. I craved an avenue to write for fun under personalised deadlines, themes, and expectations. The cliche "choose a job you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life" should feature that caveat.

L: That's all well and good for creative careers. How does a doctor reignite their spark in their profession? Or, like, a firefighter?

H: I don't have all the answers, and my med dreams died before they could be born. But I imagine the impetus to improve people's lives or even save them is a lot of the juice that keeps such people going, even on the numerous tough days.

L: And, of course, one is always allowed to shift to something totally unrelated to the occupation they embarked on in their 20s.

H: Totally. This was strangely taboo in our parents' and grandparents' generations; a teacher was expected to live and die a teacher as if their ambitions and mindset at 20 stayed stagnant throughout their working years.

L: There are loads of careers you have to dedicate your whole life to mastering, though — The 10,000-hour philosophy and its many siblings.

H: I’m not proposing a life rule by any means. Those who want to remain in their lanes sharpening their crafts can do so. I just hope that with time, those who are okay being Jacks and Jills of several trades give themselves those opportunities.

L: "The only rule is that there are no rules."

H: Maybe just two rules.

L: That was a good two seconds--

H: First, employers, don't advertise job openings unless they're actually open — Ati ndo ionekane tu you’re hiring as a formality, yet the (un[der]qualified) hires were selected before HR even made the announcements.

L: Fair enough. What's the second?

H: There's good reason to want to work at your job and justify your paycheck; no fun sitting in the limbo that is jobless employment. But when you get bored and feel your role no longer offers you much to do, don't be like the Spotify UI developers who ruined the mobile app with their stupid plus signs that eliminated the perfectly-fine heart icons.

L: And she brings us right back to her first-world problems. Bravo.