How to live a fulfilling life at your boring ofice job

Most people in America have had at least some experience with that mindless office job – the one you took solely to pay the bills, where you sit in a cubicle for nine hours straight, that has nothing to do with your career dreams, and consists of work you could do with your eyes closed. The hours take up most of the day, and there’s no time after work to do much, especially if you have a family.

So you leave the office everyday feeling like you’ve accomplished nothing, your brain is going numb, and you’re wasting your life away. Before you slip into depression and lose your cognitive abilities, measures must be taken.

First of all, nobody spends all day at the office doing work. In a survey conducted in 2005, people spend an average of 70% of their time at the office actually working. Much of the remaining 30% is spent chatting with coworkers, reading email, taking extremely long dumps or naps in the bathroom, mindlessly web-surfing, staring into space, and doing other time-wasting activities.

Though they do make the day go by faster, these time-wasting activities must be kept to a minimum, for they may only add to your sense of worthlessness when the day ends. The most common productive activity is fulfilling personal obligations like paying bills. Online surveys are a great way to earn free stuff while getting paid. A coworker managed to earn a roundtrip ticket to Hawaii by spending 10 minutes a day on www.e-miles.com over three years. Or, you could make money on a side job. If your management tolerates Internet usage, they surely wouldn’t notice what you’re typing into Microsoft Word. Score a freelance typing assignment, and you might be able to eat an extra burger for dinner tonight. Since you sit in front of one all day, learn something about computers. Open the help application and learn to calibrate your screen or setup a printer. Surprise the IT guy with what you know the next day!

“But, I really have brainless work that takes up all day,” you complain. “Plus, I don’t think it’s ethical to get paid and not work!” Well, here are two ways to achieve personal enrichment while you work.

If work involves minimal thinking, podcasts are an ideal solution. You could learn Spanish at www.rollingrs.com, or listen to the history of New York at www.theboweryboys.com, without missing a beat on your spreadsheet. Also, believe it or not – you can exercise while sitting in an office chair. Here’s a simple ankle roll that increases blood circulation: With your heel on the floor, rotate your foot in a circle. Do it clockwise and counterclockwise 10 times. Then stretch your foot and hold it for 5 seconds. Repeat. Feel better?

Now that work is more enjoyable, you should start seriously assessing reality. Do you really have to be stuck in this office forever? With your newfound self-worth and rejuvenated brain, maybe, just maybe, you could find a job where the work is enjoyable.