Getting the Most Out of Work

Hi all,

The summer break from school is about halfway over for me. In another couple of months I'll be back to the books. Right now I have a summer job that I quite enjoy but when I realized that I'm approaching the halfway mark of the summer - that half my time in this job is nearly up - I asked myself what I really learnt from this job (in a spiritual sense).

Every workplace has certain dynamics; there are many interactions, and tasks to do. It's a terrible waste to just work somewhere and not really gain spiritual knowledge. So I'm trying to reflect upon what I can do in order to get the most out of my remaining couple of months.

Here are some things that came to mind to investigate or to look deeper into:

1) Computer work: about 2/3 to 3/4 of my time at work involves working on the computer (writing programs, analysing designs, etc.) - the rest is spent reading books or doing calculations by hand, etc.

The age-old question arises, how can I really keep aware/concentrated while on the computer, without getting lost in my mind or finding computer-provoked emotions cropping up.

Frequent mini-breaks are helpful - around every 20 minutes I try to walk around the office and detach myself psychologically from the computer. But the issue still remains how I can keep aware while actually at the computer?

It seems the longer one is at the computer the more difficult it can be to not get psychologically lost, but I shouldn't lose the awareness instantaneously upon sitting at the computer - there's a certain time I can be aware before becoming identified. So what happens that makes me identified? Why can't I just remain aware?

2) Relationships: how can I keep inner peace and be natural while interacting with those around me?

There's sometimes an awkwardness I feel when talking with authority figures at work (my supervisor or other experienced researchers). Sometimes my colleagues do things that irritate me. There are some people I barely know but see virtually every day, and there's the question of how to interact with them – not being cold and indifferent, not being overly talkative.

The answers to improving the above is of course keeping clear internally with the awareness and eliminating the egos (eliminating awkwardness, pride, irritation, etc.). And I have been making the efforts to do so. But there always seems to be more layers to uncover in these relationships and I want to get as deep an understanding as possible.

3) Laziness.

For the record, I still do my job :-)

But laziness does crop up... If I've been working on a project for a while (usually I have about 2 or 3 projects to work on), it can start to get stale and then I feel a real resistance to continuing to work upon it. That's where laziness kicks in and allows me to walk just a little slower while on an errand, or allows me to have a little longer of a conversation with my colleagues, or convinces me to work on a more enjoyable project that might not be as pressing.

I need to look into this more because just as laziness is bad in the past I’ve seen it's also very easy to overwork. Balance is key.

4) Unpleasant situations: yes, they also make an appearance.

For example, I could be in a work-related discussion with someone and we are getting absolutely nowhere or maybe there is a time when I really cannot leave the computer for an extended duration. In such times I really just want to get away and do something else but I cannot leave the situation for various reasons.

So I have to grin and bear it, despite all these thoughts about how bad it is, feelings of boredom or irritation, or even impulses to walk away. In these circumstances I find lots of tension coming up in my body and as a psychological means of escape I find myself looking for distractions – fidgeting, thinking about something unrelated, etc.

I think if I could really just stand my ground, fighting to be aware and eliminating the egos in all these sorts of situations then a whole lot of progress could be made and I could experience more peace amidst all work situations.

5) Attachment to tasks: changes happen.

I may work hard on something for many hours and once I am done (here is where feelings of pride and accomplishment come up) then I get word that the whole plan recently changed and I need to redo half of what I have done, or perhaps my work is not quite done the way my supervisor prefers (here is where feelings of defeat and negativity arise).

In this process I'm slowly learning the importance of not getting attached to ideas or plans and being humble in the work done.

That’s all I wanted to share. Feel free to share your work-related investigations.

Much Strength, everyone!

Mike