A couple years ago I was putting my heart and all my energy to motivate and inspire my team, trying to walk in to the office with a smile on my face every day, cheering up my team whenever we struggled, looking for a positive twist in every challenge we’ve faced.
And yet, one of my team members approached me with a question that totally caught me off guard. He asked: “So, Alina, is this it? The nine-to-five? Is that all there is?" The question was filled with desperation and a lost hope despite a vague smile on his face. My heart dropped. Was this really all there was? Was I merely here to help my team to navigate the corporate ladder, trying to make each day a bit less exhausting, repetitive, and uninspiring?
For a while, I’d convinced myself that I had found my purpose through my team. I thought my role was to make their jobs meaningful, to lead them beyond the corporate grind of endless reports, unhappy clients, and constant profit-chasing. But did I just cover up the truth of a rat race with a fake smile, pretending that there was a meaning to it all?
That question followed me everywhere – through my sabbatical and my return to the nine-to-five after taking a break. I wondered: Are we all just stuck in a rat race? If so, how do we escape? And if you leave to start something of your own, are you truly free, or are you just on a different level of the same game?
I’ve been finding glimpses of an answer to this question, and a few days ago, my thoughts on this came together into a clear picture and I jumped at my laptop to put this article together.
Our nine-to-five jobs aren’t prisons or pits to escape from. Instead, they are schools, uniquely crafted environments where we’re paid to learn, while delivering value to others - clients, employers, coworkers. We aren't at the mercy of managers, shareholders, or corporate machines. We’re here to build skills that can one day help us create our own dreams — even if they lie in different industries.
This "school" teaches us invaluable lessons: persistence, grit, self-motivation, communication, leadership, project management, time management, confidence, financial planning, and self-promotion. We learn to manage procrastination, sharpen focus, and develop resilience. All of these are transferrable, empowering skills that, when the time is right, can help us bring our own vision to life.
What a powerful opportunity — to get paid to learn, to develop and to grow. The trick is to shift our mindset. Rather than complaining about the daily grind, we can approach each day with curiosity, seeing every task as a lesson. Then, when we're ready, we can shoot for the stars, putting to work everything we've learned.
Those who have succeeded in making their dreams come true — entrepreneurs, visionaries — offer this opportunity to us within the environments they've built. While letting their creation keep going, growing and flourishing, we get our chance. What might seem like a routine job on the surface becomes a place for growth, preparation, and self-discovery.
Seeing work as a platform for personal growth can transform our attitudes. We’re no longer working "for them"; we’re working with them and for ourselves. Learn what you need, do what helps the company you work for, express gratitude, and, when the time is right, go build what your soul truly desires.
In the end, the journey isn’t about escaping the nine-to-five; it’s about cherishing it as the stepping stone it truly is. Learn all you can — these opportunities are gifts. Just remember, above all, to keep learning. It is all part of the path.
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