You're reading I Did Not Quit My Mundane Job After Reading Robin Sharma’s Book, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you're enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

I don’t know if you can relate with me, but
ever since I stepped into university, I have dreamt of changing the world (I
think most people do). The naïve me thought that the world would be my
playground as soon as I graduated from one of the best universities, and then I
would be on the path of achieving great things (including working in a Fortune
500 company!)

Things, however, did not turn out to be as
I expected. Once I was out of the cocoon, reality hit hard. Companies weren’t
that eager to hire me, the job market was tough, there was a lot of competition
and I could see my dreams shattering in front of my eyes.

It is difficult to stay
motivated when things don’t go your way especially when you are unemployed
and you have to pay the bills at the end of the month. So, I thought of just
taking up any job that came my way regardless of whether or not it was a part
of that Fortune list or related to the field I wanted to go to. (Bad idea.
Don’t even think about it)

Thankfully though, after an excruciatingly
long wait, I did get an offer from a well-reputed organization, and the work
was also related to what I wanted to pursue (remotely, but something is better
than nothing, right?). So I jumped at the opportunity.

I was pretty excited to start. However, my
excitement couldn’t live for long. I am one of those people who live to tackle
challenges because routine bores them. And soon after I started working, things
started to seem mundane because of the small learning curve. I wanted to learn
more and contribute more, and I kept feeling like I was underutilized.

To Quit Or Not To Quit?

When you don’t like your job, each day
feels like a drag and you hate waking up in the morning to go through the same routine
again. My first instinct was to quit and look for greener pastures, but this is
one decision that you can’t just take spontaneously. Some
people do that, but in my case, I still remembered that agonizing long wait
and ever growing pile of bills.

So, I turned towards self-help books to dig
some hope and motivation for continuing my job. I have always been a fan of
Robin Sharma and his books. I have learned some great lessons
from The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari and The 5 am Club.

I then came across this book, The Leader Who Had No Title and it
completely changed my perspective towards my job.

Leadership Is Your Birthright

Contrary to the popular belief that
leadership is meant for a few chosen people, this book pitches the idea: everyone
is a leader, regardless of what their job role is in an organization. In this
business fable, a retired veteran, who is trying to search for a purpose in his
life and work; talks to four people, who are not considered to be in leadership
positions as per the norm. But they are happy with their work and they believe
that they play an important role in their respective organizations.  

This book challenged my perspective i.e. a
mundane job is not meaningful. The four leaders that the veteran met, had
ordinary jobs that of a librarian and a waitress. And our usual perspective is
that the success of an organization doesn’t lie in such jobs, which are easy to
replace. But the book breaks the stereotype and shine light towards a fresh
perspective; which is, when people are good at their jobs, they automatically
become a pivot of an organization and success flows through them.

“What I’ve learned about leadership is that
leaders are those individuals, who do the things that failures aren’t willing
to do—even though they might not like doing them either. They have the
discipline to do what they know to be important—and right—versus what’s easy
and fun.”

Patience Is Virtue

I will be honest, I have been told many
times that I am not a patient person and perseverance
is the key to success in life. I will admit that I need to work on that
weakness of mine. After completing this book, I realized the fact that my job,
no matter how mundane or boring it may seem to me, has a role to play in the
organization. And that was the reason I was hired and all I have to do is to
give it my 100 percent. Also, I need to be the best at it and prove that I am
worthy of more responsibility.

“The farmer has patience and trusts the
process. He just has the faith and deep understanding that through his daily
efforts, the harvest will come. And then one day, almost out of nowhere, it
does.”

Stop Comparing Yourself

One of the biggest reasons for my
disappointment was, perhaps, seeing my batch mates in higher positions with
fancy titles while I was stuck in a not-so-impressive place. Comparison is like
a vortex that sucks you in and robs you out of joy. It is a natural reaction,
considering that the availability of
internet, smartphones and our constant use of social media makes us compare
our lives with others. But you need to realize that your journey is different
from others and not having a flashy title doesn’t mean that you will not be
successful in the long run.

Hang in there!

The crux of my entire experience is that taking
spontaneous decisions without giving them a second thought is not the answer to
your problems. The answer is to be the best at what you do, persevere and then
let success find you. 

You've read I Did Not Quit My Mundane Job After Reading Robin Sharma’s Book, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you've enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.