A Message for My Fellow Square Pegs (Issue 639)
Are you tired of trying to fit into round 9-5 holes?
Do you ever feel like an impostor?
I sure did. For many, many years!
I worked hard for decades, got promoted several times (eventually to an exec role), and was successful by all accounts. From the outside, it looked like I was thriving. But, on the inside, I was stressed, depressed, and unhealthy.
Some of us were never meant to fit into traditional corporate life. We’re square pegs in a round-hole world.
The world is a weird place. There is a very narrow definition of how you are supposed to live your life and work to make a living. Schools train us to follow this 9-5 path and work for an employer. Parents often place expecations on us for the careers we’re supposed to pursue. Peers cheer you on when you race along the spinning hamster wheel of corporate success. But, they frown when you question any of it or want to leave to do something very different from the cultural norm. I lost some friends when I left the corporate world to start my own business.
So, it’s no wonder most of us give up fighting and dreaming. We sigh and head off to our jobs so we can do the right thing and be just like everyone else. Climb the ladder, get yourself a nice car, and buy that house in the suburbs. Be prepared to spend more time with your boss and coworkers than your friends and family for a long, long time.
Sure, we may grind through it for several years—or even decades. But we eventually start to burn out from long hours, missing our families, and working in environments that don't really understand us or appreciate the unique value we bring to the table.
That doesn't mean you can never find the “right home." It simply means you need to do your homework and be more intentional in selecting an environment that understands you and values the genuine you.
It's not easy, of course. The easiest path is to bounce from job to job hoping it might work out this time. That’s what most people do, and that’s why most people don’t like their jobs. It’s not a good idea to leave your happiness and fulfillment to random chance.
Working harder to find the right environment is worth it. Unfortunately, that can take a long, long time. And, you may find a great job with a great boss, only to have everything fall apart a few years later.
That happened to me several times during my career. A great boss would leave the company, and my new boss wasn’t a great fit for me. Or, a big re-org would shuffle all the players, and I would end up reporting to someone unpleasant. Or, the company would get acquired, things would implode, and I’d find myself back in the hunt for something new again.
And again.
And again…
Eventually, some of us stop trying to squeeze into the little corporate holes that someone else defined, and we start building our own thing so we can enjoy our final working years a lot more.
Again, this path is certainly not an easy one. But, wow, I’ll take this kind of “hard” any day over the kind of hard that comes with reporting to a crappy boss, hating work every day, and constantly feeling vulnerable (e.g., there have already been thousands and thousands of layoffs this year).
What about you?
Have you left already?
Are you actively making plans to leave?
Or, are you in the final stretch of your career, feeling stuck, and tired of being unhappy trying to fit in? That gets old, and I know how it feels. So, I'm always happy to chat with you about it, if you need to vent!
You can always schedule a complimentary call with me. I love meeting new people and learning more about their lives.
I’m Larry Cornett, an executive coach who works with ambitious professionals to help them reclaim their power, become more invincible, and create better opportunities for their work and lives. Do more of the work you love and less of what you hate!
📕 Check out the Summer version of my Invincible Daily Journal!
