Stop Working for “The Man” and Do This Instead

Much of the way we live is unconsciously learned behavior that gets built, thought by thought, into habit and routine.

We do something a certain way because “it’s always been done that way.” We believe something because we were told it was true enough times, we stopped wondering. We accept something because we’ve never envisioned it could be different. As said in The Truman Show, “We accept the world with which we are presented, it’s as simple as that.”

To put it bluntly, we have been brainwashed.

Our attitude toward our work life, particularly in America, is no exception, and perhaps provides one of the best examples of our brainwashing.

We’re told, and thus believe, that we should find a job that meets the following criteria: they must pay well, the job must be suited to our abilities, and ideally, there’s room for advancement. Following our passions and curiosity might be on the list somewhere, but not near the top.

We are reminded that simply having a job is something to be thankful for in this country. Wanting more out of a job — such as that it should inspire or excite us, or that we should see ourselves as contributing to the larger mission — is unnecessary, and maybe even greedy.