Happy Holidays!
As another year wraps up, this is a nice time for quiet and reflection.
Everyone in Japan still seems to be working, but in the latter half of December I get less emails and less chats. People seem to almost smell the lazy time spent at home celebrating the New Year. I just love it.
As we often write about work, I would like to share my own work journey over the year.
I moved from a salaried role to a contract role in January. This meant that if I completed my tasks, I did not have to sign in at the start of work and sign out at the end. I did not have to be online all the time.
And… I struggled. Compared to the freedom I imagined myself with, I felt so much guilt if my computer was turned off during work hours. I felt guilt knowing those I struggled with, working crazy hours and constantly responding to requests were still doing so while I was not.
At the same time, I took it easy. I was not working all the time. I felt I could say no to work more, and I did (sometimes). I enjoyed being left out of group chats, meetings, and decisions.
In 2016, I had a mix of burnout and disillusionment, leading me to quit a job and spend a few months taking stock before I felt motivated to work again. At the start of this year, I was actually in a similar position mentally but without the financial security to allow me to quit. What has been interesting is that over this year, I have felt the motivation to work and to contribute coming back to me, despite not taking time off to reset. As obvious as it may sound, I have realised that by reframing my relationship to work within the organisation, it has allowed me to gain perspective again and to heal.
Anyway, a thousand blessings to whoever is reading this. Starting Substack this year has allowed us to properly engage in some really important topics, and we are very grateful and appreciative of your engagement.
P.s. Here are a couple of posts I really enjoyed writing
Enjoy the end of the year and let us take some much needed time to be present and hope for a great 2023!
Toby