Why Do I Get Bored at Every Job and What To Do About It? (2024)

Are you working your way into boredom?

One of the most disturbing feelings is being bored at a job. Is there a lack of motivation? Is it a face that will fade away? Or is it my choice of a career?

I have been bored at work. I know the feeling.

I’ve always wondered why do I get bored at every job.

In my research, I discovered these three things:

• Work Interference — Constant disruption of your work rhythm
• Acceleration at work — High-speed chase at work with no time to handle your duties.
• Inertia at work -Stagnation at work leading to underemployment.

Let’s look deeper into what all this means and what you can do about it.

1. What Does It Mean to Be Bored At a Job?

Probably you already know what and how it feels to be bored at a job.

Boredom at work transcends your experience but rather your perspective on the job.

According to boredom at work-study, individuals experience differently. Some have a higher propensity to get bored than others. This has been attributed to mental issues.

Boredom at job primarily arises for the following reasons;

• Low-interest levels.
• Uninvolvement at a job.
• Lacking enthusiasm in their work.

The following are some of the areas these boredom measurements tend to focus on:

• Depression
• Apathy
• Anger and depression
• Un-satisfaction of life
• Substance abuse
• Gambling
• Job dissatisfaction
• Poor job rating

Source: Different Types of boredom

2. Why Do I Get Bored at Every Job

Boredom is common among many of us at a job. Some may say it’s healthy to feel bored at every position.

However, not all of us experience the same levels of boredom. The way you lose your motivation and deal with a lack of enthusiasm for a job is different from another.

Working Environment

Studies show that repetitive, monotonous, uninteresting, or lack complexity to give appropriate stimulation for the individual create boredom.

Being overworked can lead to fatigue and ill-being at your job. However, the research found that being underworked causes boredom.

This can be categorized into two:

• Quantitative — Situation where you’re not fully occupied with work. The work is insignificant, leading you to boredom.
• Qualitative — The work here is not engaging enough. As an employee, your skills are not utilized fully.

Ideally, bored employees lack jobs that they could enjoy and feel engaged.

As you question yourself on Why do I get bored at every job, you probably need to ask the following:

• Role conflict — Is there a reporting structure where you work? Is there a defined organogram with clarity on who to report to? Do you feel a conflict on what you do with another?
• Role ambiguity — Are you aware of your roles and responsibilities? Do you have a work plan and timelines to deliver?
• Red tape — Are there too much bureaucracy in the jobs you work on? DO you feel as if you are voiceless about what you are working on?
• High workload — Is your appointment giving you a work-life balance? Do you know that you feel overburdened with your work?
• Time pressure — Is your superior constantly chasing you to deliver work fast? Do you have time to follow your diary of the day?
• Unfriendly coworker- Have you been experiencing harshness from your colleagues? Do you get support from your coworkers?

If you can address some of these questions, you can probably identify why every job seems boring to you.

Lack of purpose

Whenever you find value in what you do at your job, you’ll be motivated.

So, what can contribute to finding meaning in your work?

• Work environment — Building a social relationship with your colleagues goes a long way in finding purpose in your work.
• Individual perception — Personal goals and perceptions are subjective to every individual. One who faces complex tasks is more exciting, while another will prefer to deal with simplified work.

This brings us to the next aspect, which looks into your character.

Individual Character

Depending on your individual goals and ambition, this will motivate you to pursue an interest in your career. If you want to grow your profession, then you’ll do what it takes to find the purpose for your job.

However, if you perceive that you will not learn anything in your job, you’ll be uninterested.

Individual perception also contributes to how you view boredom at work. Depending on your approach to your work, you may have a bias for some duties as boring while others are not.

Employees with higher intellect capacity may find it boring being engaged in work that doesn’t stimulate them. Even coworkers who aren’t on their level may also trigger boredom.

3. What Can I Do About Being Bored At Every Job

“Work is making a living out of being bored” Karl Lagerfeld

Suppose you experience boredom at work due to a lack of stimulus and purpose in your occupations. In that case, you can mitigate the situation by tailoring your job to better match your abilities and motivations.

Let’s find out more about how you can achieve this.

Recrafting your Job

As an employee, there are certain activities you can initiate to create to motivate and create meaning to your job.

There are three ways to craft your job;

• Employees can vary the number, scope, or type of activities they engage in while at work, for example, to change the actions of their job duties.
• Employees can alter work’s relational boundaries by adjusting the amount or quality of social contacts or encounters at work.
• Employees can change their cognitive task boundaries by changing how they see their job or work position.

As an employee, you need to find better ways to balance job demands and personal needs.

Let’s check some examples you can apply to achieve job crafting successfully.

• You are increasing your job structure, for instance, by performing varied tasks or improving your skillset.
• Try to increase social support, e.g., seeking supervisory feedback.
• You can demand challenging roles by volunteering in new projects.

Finding purpose in your job

Identify your main intention for pursuing your career. Find the main drive that will revive your passion for your job.

You can also seek challenges that will motivate you to improve.

• Learn a new skill.
• Take on projects that scare you.
• Find someone to mentor or volunteer your expertise to some needy institution.

Take a break.

Probably what you need is to recharge yourself. You can take some time off to strategize and come back stronger.

Ask for some time off from your employer. Take a vacation away from normalcy to regain your optimum productivity.

While at it, you can ask yourself the following questions.

• Is this your type of work? Do you find this kind of job exciting.? Probably you’ll need to rethink a career change. We primarily chase paying bills, but you can find something elevating when you feel dissatisfied at work.
• Improve in dull areas- Delegate, outsource or deal with it. It would help if you prioritized handling the boring stuff to avoid affecting your productivity.
• On and off-peak seasons- Take breaks during off-peak times when there’s nothing much to do.

4. Does Being Bored at My Job Hurt My Career?

Yes, it does.

The faster you deal with it, the better for your career. There are numerous ways you get affected and below are some of the areas.

Stress levels are rising.

Many Stress Relief Workshop readers say Tedious occupations can be pretty stressful.

It might be distressing to feel that your skills are being wasted at your current employment.

Getting into bad habits

People are said to relieve boredom by consuming alcohol, eating unhealthy foods, or engaging in harmful behaviors at work.

If you don’t fix your problem, you may seek stimulation elsewhere to alleviate your boredom.

Psychiatric illness

According to a study, young adults or recent graduates are more likely to acquire depression or low moods due to “having to do a job that doesn’t expand them and keep them fulfilled.”

Unproductivity

An increase in boredom will affect the way you perceive your task. In turn, you will not be productive. You lose interest in your job, affecting your output.

Job Hopping

Although it might be recommended in certain conditions, it often affects your resume.

There are unavoidable reasons to change jobs, including the following:

• Unsatisfied job environment.
• Career growth.
• Health concerns.

However, boredom and mental illness can also contribute to job-hopping. Most employers would prefer hiring you for a longer-term basis.

Get It Right

You’ve now got an answer. Your question on why I get bored at every job has been cleared.

You can take steps towards making your job more appealing.

Take it gradually with small attainable steps to improve.

You are not alone in being bored at a job. You’ll need a mental shift to handle whatever you are facing positively.

Go out there and get it right.