Having commitment is one aspect that people find hard to deal with when working. There are those out there that can’t hold a job for long for whatever reason they tell you but when you dig deeper, often there is a deep rooted problem with commitment.

There are two scenarios where job commitment can be a problem:

 

Scenario 1. After the application has been sent but before you have been offered the job.

Scenario 2: Once you have the job, the commitment to remain for a lengthy period of time.

Let’s look at the first problem, job commitment before you even have the job.

One of the major causes of job commitment prior to employment is the narrow field we box ourselves into. Not only that, but our expectations are way too high, thus we wont go for anything that is ‘below us’. (In my own studies with Generation Y I know this as we tend to want everything yesterday and we want to earn big dollars) An example is that we as young people tend to say that ‘I would like a job as a Motorbike magazine sub-editor where I will work 10-15 minutes from where I live. After my course finishes I will be on $55k per year’. Here’s some news. It probably won’t happen! What’s going to happen is that you will never get off the blocks in the first place. You will remain frozen and unable to commit to a job say as a copyeditor at a community newspaper because it’s not what you wanted.

Here’s the solution. Lower your expectations. Everything can’t be given on a platter. It’s important to have goals but it’s nearly impossible to achieve. There are so many variables in the equation above that you are putting insane pressure on yourself.

What if you couldn’t earn this amount right away? Will you not commit to something that pays a little lower so you can build up your experience? Would you consider being flexible and traveling to get you further in your career? Sometimes we have to get out of our comfort zone to get a start and this means commuting or moving away no matter how hard this can be to leave everything behind. Lowering our expectations a little will help us commit to starting off our career perhaps as that copy person so we can look further abroad.

There is a difference between lowering your expectations and settling for something that is downright on the bottom rung of the ladder. If you are being taken advantage of or under appreciated in your workplace it is probably time to leave.

Let’s look at the other problems of job commitment phobes, when they are actually in a job and can’t stay for longer than 6 months or even a few months.

The main problem here is that people quit their jobs when the ‘honeymoon period’ is over. The Honeymoon period is the period that can last from one month to several months whereby the job is exciting as it is new. You can feel that your employer is eager to train you and for you to learn.

When that period wears off, the job can become less exciting. It might become more mundane and tedious. Thus your satisfaction levels might lower in the job.

You have to understand that all aspects of work no matter the field in one way or another can become mundane. Sometimes it’s the attitude that you bring when going to work every day that will be the difference. The attitude that you’re going to your workplace to achieve something rather than going through the motions will make it more fulfilling to you in the long term. If you focus on the tedious aspects of what you do, you will soon develop a negative association along with it.

Another factor is that many young people feel that they have climbed the peak of the mountain when they have landed a job. They feel immense satisfaction that they are wanted. After months of unemployment this can be the case.

 

The reality is that the person may have reached the peak, but the climb does not stop. Some employees leave after a short period of time because they only ever had one goal, to find employment. They haven’t replaced this goal with anything else. Setting more goals once employed will help keep you there for a longer period of time and gain that necessary experience to help you pave your career.