Feeling unfulfilled and burned out at work? If it helps, you’re not alone. Not even close. According to 2022 surveys, 60% of people say they feel emotionally detached at work, and 19% of us are straight up “miserable”. It doesn’t matter if your job is professional puppy wrangler or full-time chocolate taster – doing anything over and over again, 48 weeks a year, for multiple years will leave you feeling a bit…meh. It’s what art critique Robert Hughes called the “peculiarly modernist hell of repetition”. Sound familiar?

So, what can you do to feel more fulfilled at work? Quite a bit, as it turns out.

TAKE STOCK First thing, sit down and dedicate some serious thoughts to the problem. Is it the actual role that’s leaving you bummed, or the company? Maybe it’s just a crappy manager or bad internal culture. Is the problem that you like your job, but you’re not really challenging yourself and learning new skills? A psychologist or counsellor can help your figure this stuff out, and it’s a good place to start. Can’t fix the problem if you don’t know the cause.

REFLECT ON YOUR VALUES Feeling unfulfilled and generally blergh is often a result of what Jean-Paul Satre called living in ‘bad faith’. Basically, the reason you hate your job is because it probably doesn’t line up with your values, or your ‘authentic self’. To fix this, figure out what truly matters to you. Is it helping people? Maybe take your professional skills and use them in the non-profit sector. Is it family? Find a job with better work/life balance. Try and align your career with whatever brings you joy in life. 

SET SOME GOALS The trick to beating repetition is progress. You need to feel like you’re moving forwards in some way, either professionally or by learning new skills. To do this, you need to figure out some career goals. This might involve specific skills you want to acquire, positions you want to reach, or places you want to work. Having these goals will give you a sense of purpose and direction. Something to strive for. It makes work feel less like a treadmill and more like a journey.

UPSKILL, UPSKILL, UPSKILL Feeling unfulfilled often comes from a lack of challenge or personal growth. If a job’s too easy, or you’re not actually learning anything, boredom inevitably creeps in. To fix this, pitch professional development opportunities to your manager, and explore different ways to upskill. You can try online learning, attend industry events or find a professional mentor. Most organisations have dedicated training budgets set aside, so don’t feel shy about asking.

CHANGE DIRECTIONS If you’ve figured out that it’s your entire industry that’s leaving you unfulfilled, it might be time for a change of direction. These can be drastic or subtle. You can go back to school and start a new field from scratch, or simply take your professional skillset and apply it elsewhere. Don’t be discouraged by age either: it’s never too late for a change. Just think, if you wait another five years, you’ll be in the exact same spot – but five years older.

LOOK OUTSIDE OF WORK You know what? Work isn’t everything. Seriously, there’s nothing wrong with just working to live: earning enough to pursue your passions and clocking off guilt-free. Often, we expect our careers to fulfill us in every possible way; creative challenges, financial rewards, social connections, a sense of purpose and professional validation. And for 99% of people, that’s not realistic. If work is leaving you unfulfilled, find things outside work – hobbies, sport, friends, family, travel, volunteering – that add value and purpose to your life.