Thinking Paper # 69: Why does everyone hate their jobs?‏

By Ron Ford Golightly

Abstract

The IIPBA's employment analytics team has recently finished a pioneering piece of research into employment options for people in their 20s/early 30s who are well paid, well educated and have sufficient access to life's essentials e.g. DVD boxsets and the internet. The findings are, in short, extraordinary.

The Discussion

It has been apparent to the IIPBA for sometime now that people in their 20s and early 30s have grown increasingly dissatisfied and apathetic about being well paid, educated, cultured, wined, dined and comforted. The number of these people who wish to move to a cave near to Lake Tittikaka or open an organic shoe shop in a desolate area of north Wales has jumped by 600% in the last year alone. In conjunction with this, the number of people who describe work as a "bone crushing ordeal" has also rocketed.

The Data

We asked 7 people within zones 1-3 of London why it was that, despite having largely successful jobs and active social lives, they felt that they were missing out on the wonders of an intricately rich and beautiful world.

• 100% said that it was because they were missing out on the wonders of an intricately rich and beautiful world

Other reasons given included: video games, advertising, close proximity to other humans, DVD boxsets, attention spans and BlackBerry's. One lonely man from zone 1 said he just wanted to know what the weather felt like again as he shivered underneath an air conditioning unit. Another had a full body breakdown when all three of his BlackBerry's rang simultaneously as an advert on the TV in the background filtered his subconcious and made him feel inadequate.

Recommendations

We don't really have any solid recommendations, but forging substantial connections with other human beings and nice long lunches are a really good starting point. International travel also sounds lovely.

Other than that, maybe we should have a war?