I have always thought that my career or anyone's career for that matter is synonymous to a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship. Here's what I think...
Your job is just like your boyfriend or girlfriend. It's something you love doing (no pun intended) and something you are really passionate about. Sure it can be incredibly busy at times but at the end of the day, you should come home fulfilled that you were productive and that you're doing something you're really happy about.
Of course, it's not always smooth-sailing. Duh. Just like in any relationship where there are occasional bumps in the road, you encounter different challenges in your job from time to time. In both instances, you get through it and learn from the mistakes and move on.
Sometimes, though, when you get too comfortable in a relationship, you tend to set it aside thinking that you'll just solve it later. Same with your job, you get too comfortable or dependent and you put things off for later, and when it gets really really bad, it'll end up consuming you leaving you stressed, frustrated and depressed.
It could also be that you've been working too hard and have shown way too much effort but none of these efforts have been recognized nor appreciated.
In other cases, you can find yourself doing way more than you should because you simply do not have a choice. True it's inevitable that you sometimes you have to work beyond the scope of your work but there are times when it gets way too much already. To add insult to injury, aside from the fact that this extra effort has not been acknowledged, you don't even get a raise or promotion for it.
And the list goes on....
I believe the above scenarios are completely relatable to a relationship wherein one exhibits more effort than the other, and because the latter gets so used to the showering of attention and lovey dovey efforts, it becomes all to normal and fails to show gratitude and appreciate the efforts of the former.
However, in both scenarios for work and relationship, both parties have to work equally hard for a happy and harmonious run. That, of course, is common knowledge already. I believe that the scenarios mentioned above have to be dealt with right away and must not be put off for another day or later. If it keeps getting set aside, it will get worse and consume you leaving you stressed, frustrated and depressed. These can go on and on and before you know it, you're unhappy. You'll find yourself looking for other options while bargaining at the same time. You'll also come to a point wherein you'll ask yourself if it's still worth it and start asking your friends about it whether you should stay or leave.
In the end, it's either you settle and hoping everything will get better or leave for a job or relationship you deserve.
