6 Dating Lessons That Can Also Apply To The Workplace

1. I may have no idea what I want, but I know what I don’t want…

When it comes to the kind of man I want, sometimes I just don’t know.  Yesterday I had one thing in mind, but today, as usual, I changed my mind, and Tomorrow, I will probably change it again.  However, I do know what I don’t want in a guy.  This helps weed out some of the crazies.  So what if I’m not 100% sure about Mr. Right? …  At least I know when I have found Mr. Wrong!

This is exactly like picking out the perfect job.  Sometimes, we just don’t know what the perfect job is.  I have been a graphic designer for 9 years, then, two years ago, I got in to makeup artistry.  I love them both so equally I refuse to settle.  Therefore, I have a steady 9-5 doing what I love and a not so steady, wherever, whenever, doing what I love!  I know I could never be a lawyer, or a bartender, or a doctor, etc.  If it isn’t art, I don’t want to deal with it!!

2. It’s better to take a risk then to never have taken one at all.

If you like a man/woman, tell him/her.  Maybe they won’t return your affections, but what if they do?  You will never know.  You didn’t speak up.  Maybe he or she is shy.  Then what?  Two shy people who are perfect for one another never date because they were too shy to speak up?  Or what if some other man/woman comes along and swoops him or her up.  You’ve waited too long and now you missed out!  This isn’t looking too good for you.  You get out there and “be brave” in the words of Sara Bareilles.  

It’s quite similar to work. You have this great idea at the workplace, but your job is set in the Stone Age.  You are too afraid to share your ideas for fear you will be turned down, but what if there is just one supervisor who wants to listen to you?  He/she knows your company has been in the Stone Age for years now.  It’s time to modernize, and with that supervisors help, your idea makes its way into practice.  But what if you just kept your mouth shut, and Sue came up with a similar idea?  Now she is getting all kinds of credit for something you thought about first!  Go for it… again, “BE BRAVE!”

3. Don’t be afraid of change.

Change is good.  Relationships change all the time.  Sometimes they evolve and you go from dating, to in a relationship, to engaged, to married… Sometimes they end and you go from broken up, or just plain divorced.  Babies are born, people die.  And somehow all of these things both good and bad can lead you to some of the most amazing and memorable experiences of your life.

The same goes for work.  Maybe you will be promoted or transferred… Maybe you have found a new job.  Heck maybe you’re getting relocated (hopefully to someplace tropical)!  Unfortunately, maybe you lost your job.  When one door closes, another always opens.  You just have to grab it.  Change leads to evolution.  It leads to you being a better person.  It leads to new experiences and sometimes a whole new lease on life.  

4. Breaking up is hard to do, but sometimes it’s necessary.  “It’s not you; it’s me … But really, it’s you, and I’ve decided I’m just done.”

Sometimes, that guy/girl is just plain wrong for us.  Maybe they are perfect in every way, but they aren’t perfect for us.  It’s okay to say goodbye.  Sometimes you just need to do what’s best for your emotional state.  Be single or find a new love.  Just be happy!

And sometimes your job is just not cutting it any more.  Maybe you are worth more pay, or maybe you are just bored.  You don’t have to stay in anything that makes you unhappy.  Go out, find a new job, or go back to school, freelance, or buy a yacht.  You’ll be so much happier in the end.

5. There are those days when you just need a drink so you don’t accidentally on purpose slap someone.

Is your man/woman stressing you out?  Mine probably is.  But that’s okay; pull up a chair, turn on some relaxing music, and have a glass of wine (not the bottle, but a glass should do… maybe two)!

Unfortunately, wine is not allowed at work (usually), but coffee is.  Co-workers pissing you off?  Can’t stand the general public?  Did my client really just do that?  The answer is coffee.  Sit down, zone out for a few minutes, and pour yourself a nice hot cup!  It’s gonna be a long day, but you have coffee!!!!!!

6. Lastly LOVE! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!  Do it with passion!

If you are in a relationship, love and love hard with all you have to give.  Don’t skimp out.  Give it all you have.  It may not last, but that isn’t the point.  Love really does conquer a lot of things in life, and it can make a bummy day a truly magical one.  If you love someone that big fight you had last night, may just blow over with a kiss, but if you just like them, everything they can, and will do will piss you off.  Looks fade, paychecks change, and people get comfortable and say things they shouldn’t, but love can always get you through a hump.

Besides being the most important thing I ever learned about relationships, it is also the most important work lesson I ever learned.  For me, my job is my career.  It is how I will support myself for life.  How could I just do something I don’t love?  Work is just like a relationship.  If you love what you do, even on the worst day, you will give it your all because passion and success will drive you, but if you are miserable you might as well throw in the towel because on the worst days, you will be your worst.  If that paycheck isn’t good, but you love your job, you may just find yourself working extra hard.  Maybe you live day to day, paycheck to paycheck, but you are motivated to be the best.  Money shouldn’t be your motivation. Love should be.  Money comes and goes, but if you have passion for something, you can and will always find a way.