Dissatisfied Worker Bored at Work

Being Employed Can Mean Finding Your Own Projects to Do

May 1, 2009 Paym Bergson

Work given to students while hired employee twiddles her thumbs - how does one handle this situation? You are grateful to have the pay, but want to earn it and learn too.

Sometimes having a job means defining and finding your own work to help out the company.

Dissatisfied Worker Has Job but Little Work to Do

Q) I work as an office worker. When I was hired it was because they thought that I fit in and not because of the work load. I have been trying to find jobs that I can do that people aren't already doing and i haven't been getting anywhere. When I do have jobs they take them from me to give them to students because they want them to have a chance to do them. None of my supervisors know how to be one. Whenever I ask them about how I can do something related to my job they say they don't know what to do for me. I work a 30 hour work week and most of that is spent doing nothing. I have tried talking to people in my department that are higher in my department then my supervisors and they won't help me either. I didn't want to go to my boss for a while because he is never there and he doesn't like it when people don't do their jobs. I have finally e-mailed him but he is so busy and rarely here I don't know how long it will take before he gets back to me. How can I save my job and find things that I can do that the student workers can't do? How can I find out what my supervisors are supposed to be doing for me and tell them what they need to do for me?

Thanks

No Job Outline? Think Back to Interviews

A) You don't mention how long you have been employed at this office, nor how long this situation has been happening. Thirty hours means part time, but you should still have a job outline. If you did not get one at the initial hiring interview, ask for one now from the HR department. It is difficult to believe you had no idea of what you would be doing yet accepted the job offer. Think back to your interviews and what was discussed – surely some duties would have been mentioned, or how did you accept the job offer not knowing what you'd be doing? However, now is the time to rise above that – assuming you want to keep this job. Start realizing what it is the company does, and how your department fits into that. Then use whatever skills you have to try and help out the company's objective. There's always filing to do, or decluttering.

You need to be careful – the more you complain about your job, the less likely you will be asked to do projects or even be able to keep your job. It's easy to blame supervisors and others, so stop behaviour that does not put you in the best light, or puts the company in a disfavourable light. Take control by asking direct questions – such as "do you need photocopying done", or "would you mind if I filed that large pile off to the side so you have more room? "

And there`s nothing wrong with asking for a brief meeting with your boss at a predetermined date and time to discuss the situation – all you have to say is you feel you need a bit more direction to do your job properly. Do not just demand his time; respectfully request a future date and time for this meeting, and stress it should not take more that 10-15 minutes.

You were hired because they saw something in you that fit in with the company – now prove to them they made the right choice.

Bottom Line

Don't expect others to find work for you – that's not their job. Instead of complaining, figure out a way to help you help the company. You were offered the job for a reason, so give the company a reason to keep you. If you did not get a job outline at the offer, think back to what was discussed at interviews and work with that.

**Note - all letters are reprinted as received (typos and grammatical) but names and other identifying details are deleted.

The copyright of the article Dissatisfied Worker Bored at Work in Career Advice is owned by Paym Bergson. Permission to republish Dissatisfied Worker Bored at Work in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Bored at Work? Start Finding Ways to Help Yourself

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