It’s commonplace to hear of employees talking about Sunday blues or dreading going to work, but one side you never hear of is the manager or business owner.

I experienced Monday blues once as an employee after realising I wasn’t utilising my full potential in my job as a UI Designer. Work started to feel like a chore and I felt down most days. That feeling lasted about a year until I eventually quit my job and changed careers to consulting.

The real feeling of dreading going to work began a few years after I started managing a business. When the business started to grow, the pressure piled on and then the negative feelings cropped up. Slowly, I started to associate work with stress.

I would be all fired up, but the instance I got into the office environment, roght from the buildng entrance, I would be full of dread. It was like a light switch, as soon as I walked in, it would go off. My mood would change and I would feel misplaced and even upset that I had to be at work.

It eventually dawned on me that I actually didn’t like my job. The difference here being that I had created the job I dreaded. Unlike when I was an employee, I couldn’t just quit, instead I had to figure out options to better manage the situation.

Most people associate career unfulfilment with employees. What many people don’t realise is that managers, business owners, CEOs and many entrepreneurs find themselves in the same dreadful situation and it may not be as easy as quitting and moving on quickly.

The real down side of negative work experience is, when you don’t like your work, regardless of your position, employee or CEO, it affects your performance. Alowing the situation fester for years breeds chronic stress. This results in poor overall management of self and others.

The experience affected my emotional wellbeing negatively. Sometimes I wonder if I would fully recover in this lifetime.

Anyway, food for thought…

Your thoughts?