“I don’t want to work anymore! Why am I feeling this way? And how can I refresh my work happiness?”
At some point, you’ve stated or asked these very questions internally to yourself. Maybe you are agreeing or saying similar things out loud right now, which is why you are reading this article.
Everyone has days of hating work, feeling unmotivated, or contemplating how to get out of the 9-5 grind. And yes, even those who work remotely can feel this too!
In this article, I share why you don’t want to work anymore and how you can refresh your career and job motivation.
Is It Normal to Not Want to Work Anymore?
Even if you have a great job, flexibility, and great pay – it is normal to find yourself not wanting to work. Everyone has “off” days where this feeling creeps up, whether they are happy in their career or not.
And there can be a whole list of reasons you don’t want to work anymore. Some can be minor inconveniences in your day that cause this feeling.
But that urge to not want to work could be larger issues of a toxic workplace or maybe you are ready for a job or general career change.
9 Common Reasons You Don’t Want to Work Anymore
So why do you have this feeling that you don’t want to work? Why do you find yourself dreading the work day more and more? Why do you often look for excuses to leave work early?
Well there could be a few reasons or a combo of things that are leaving you mentally exhausted. Thus you want to avoid working at all.
Here’s a few common ones that could trigger your feelings about work.
1. You aren’t feeling well (mental, physical, both)
2. Toxic work environment or manager
3. Issues in your personal life
4. Having a career mid-life crisis
5. Reached a career milestone and not sure what’s next
6. Feeling underappreciated and ignored at work
7. You’ve reached a state of burn out
8. Being forced to return to the office
9. Your inspiration has disappeared
Of course there can be more than the above that triggers you not wanting to work anymore. So what can you do? Let’s get into how refresh your mindset around your job or career.
How to Refresh When You Don’t Want to Work
If you want to shake off the “I don’t want to work” feeling, then take a look at some of my tips below.
Is it your workplace or you?
Firstly, I’d look at your current job first.
Is it a manager or bad boss impacting your feelings toward work? Are you being fairly paid and treated? I’d start to analyze your workplace in general and the culture.
Maybe it’s simply time to find a new employer or start your own business.
From there, I’d also think about what your least favorite parts about work and your job are currently. What seems to aggravate you he most
Spend some time getting to the source of your feelings about your career and job. This can shed some interesting perspectives that give you the confidence to make changes.
Do a mental health check.
It’s also possible that your job or career really isn’t the problem. And that’s where some self reflection on your own mental health is key. Are you feeling burned out, depressed, super anxious, or lacking motivation in life? That can be a trigger to why you don’t want to work.
If you are feeling this way, make sure to talk to a trusted mentor, friend, family member, or therapist for advice and help you out. This can also be a great time to take time off, go on vacation, or even take a sabbatical.
Refresh your daily habits.
What kind of habits do you have before, during, and after work? You might be in a slump of being drained by the same routine everyday or find yourself not incorporating more positivity into your day.
You’d be surprised how much altering your daily habits and adding things you enjoy to your day improves how you feel about work.
The simple things can often make a difference. Like playing music you enjoy when working from home or on your commute. Or enjoying your favorite cup of coffee or tea before you start work.
This might not solve any major problems you feel about work, but could be just the pickups you need to feel more connected to work again.
Talk to your trusted network.
If you feel stuck in a career rut and your motivation is shot, it might be good to connect with your trusted network of people. And this would include former colleagues, mentors, close friends, and family.
These can be people that you can confide in and will be there to listen when you feel lost or need to vent. And they may have some good ideas or guidance when it comes to your career or job.
Start to explore a career change.
From your first step of analyzing your job, you may discover things have become stale.
Maybe you lost the passion in the work you do. Or maybe you reached a certain level on the career ladder, but there isn’t anymore room for growth.
This can open your mind to changes in career. Of course not every career is an easy switch to make. You might need further education or certifications. For example, I’m in marketing but I can’t just become a doctor because I want to.
But it’s also possible that your skills and experiences can transfer into an adjacent industry or career. Allowing you to reset and refresh your happiness with work.
Take a career break.
This one can be tricky to navigate and not everyone has the opportunity to easily take a career break. But if you find yourself in this rough headspace and work to be insufferable, then a nice break can be the perfect reset.
Certainly a vacation is great, but I’m talking about something longer than that.
If you want to take a month or more break, you’ll need a paid sabbatical offered by your employer. This isn’t super common, although I’ve seen some remote-first companies have this perk after a few years with the organization.
Or…
You’ll need to have enough money saved up to cover your expenses for the allotted time you plan on not working. I often like to refer to this as the “FU Fund.” This allows you to quit when you want or even be protected if you happen to be laid off.
Saving money these days can be tough. But there are plenty of great financial articles out there to help you boost your savings. Even if you don’t need a major career break, you’ll want to squirrel away a few months worth of expenses regardless.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully with some of the tips above, you’ll find yourself refreshed and energized about your job or career. While there is certainly more to life than working, it’s generally an unavoidable part of our lives.
And again, it’s completely normal to have that “I don’t want to work anymore” feeling.
Even when things are going great and you are overall happy in your career, you may have a day from time to time where this feeling creeps up.
Your goal though is to ensure this is not a frequent feeling that negatively impacts all areas of your life outside of work. Take time off, reassess what you want from your career, and figure out what’s holding you back.
You got this!
About Todd Kunsman
Todd is the founder of Remote Work Junkie and has been featured in numerous publications like Business Insider, HuffPost, CNBC, and more. He’s been a remote work advocate for close to a decade and has been working remotely full-time for 5+ years. He’s also a marketing, personal finance, and music nerd 🤓
