Makes me almost feel like disappearing, now all a need is a canoe. And on that subject there's an interesting article over on the BBC site about middle aged men (like the one I'm disguised as) who just disappear. Not surprisingly it seems most of these are people who are working themselves into the ground and who just lose it big style one day, like Bernard Cook...
Mr Cook's workload had been immense. But despite regularly working until two or three in the morning, the estates director had showed no signs he was about to be overwhelmed.
No but the fact that he was working 18 hour days was probably a bit of a sodding hint that your life has turned into crap casserole and the human body just is not designed to do that on a regular basis. Sure I dare say we've all pulled overnighters or a run of late nights for a week or two but working 80 hour weeks is nature's way of telling you that you need a new job. The comments on the article are worth reading too...
I work 14 hours a day as an average, seven days a week as an average, and have done so for the past 9 years. And the reason is that sometimes there is just no other option, it's called expectation and pressure. I have no idea what a holiday is, maybe the odd weekend every few months.
And the guy says that he's thought of disappearing but won't because of his family. Maybe he would like to consider what will become of his family when he drops dead from a stress induced heart attack at age 35?
I once got trapped in a job like that, the hours and expectations creep up and up and up and next thing you know the weekends start to vanish and home is just somewhere you crash for a few hours a night. When that happens, leave. Don't even think about negotiating with your bosses because all you will get are empty promises. Alternatively just stop working the extra time, do your 9 to 5. Your managers will grump, moan and call you in for meetings about your "attitude" and how you are "letting the team down". I just said "sod you, it's not worth my health, I'm not doing the hours any more but just my contracted one." Of course you'll get a shite bonus if you get one at all and come the next "rightsizing" exercise you'll be out on your ear but you'll have lined up another job by then, won't you.
After all what's an extra 5k bonus worth if you're not alive to spend it?
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