Are you sacrificing too much for your job?

No job will ever love you as much as you love it. 

You give and you give and you give some more until you have no more to give. 

It starts off small. You don’t have any hobbies and don’t know what to do with your time off other than eat, sleep and do laundry.  

Growing up, women are conditioned to overgive and others are conditioned to expect us “to be nice” and say yes when we really want and should say no.  

Then it builds, you don’t have the kind of relationships you’d like – strong friendships outside of work, a partner, a child or children, close relationships with your parents, siblings and other relatives.

Then it builds some more as you face some health challenges, maybe burnout, maybe some chronic disease you have to face it alone and on your own because you didn’t take the time outside of work to build a social support system for yourself.

Until, because you never said yes to yourself and gave all to your job, you don’t have an identity outside of it.

 Finally, because you made a career out of overgiving to your job while saying no to yourself, you wonder why you are left with nothing when you retire or you’re laid off when the company no longer needs you.

You never said yes to yourself and gave all to your job, you find you don’t have an identity outside of it.

Here’s the thing: 

Growing up, little girls are are conditioned to overgive and “to be nice.” Once we are grown women we find others are conditioned to expect us “to be nice” and say yes when we really want and should say no.  

The saddest part is that the chronic overgiving is preventable, but only you can stop you from being your job. 

Back when I was still in the Navy, a wise Navy Master Chief and mentor of mine stopped me in my tracks when she cautioned, “The Navy will never love you as much as you love it.” 

She was right.  No job will ever love you as much as you love it. 

Do yourself a favor and don’t identify with and invest so much in your job that you forget to identify with and invest in yourself and your life outside of work. 

When was the moment you realized you sacrificed too much for your job?