Getting Passionate About Your Cubicle

Getting passionate about your cubicle or server's apron or secretary's desk can be difficult. We all have our good days and bad days with our work day. Last week, I couldn't set foot in the restaurant without being in a bad mood. People kept asking me what was wrong and I insisted that I was just tired or run down. It wasn't until the new server that I was training asked me, "Are you getting frustrated with me?" did I realize that I was coming off to my co-workers as miserable, grumpy, and jaded.

I've been at the restaurant for a year now and I've definitely settled into a niche there. Most things I do are second nature, I can recite off ingredients like its nobody's business and I can tell you where to find a "Lunch Sized Chinese Chicken Salad" on the computer screen like its the back of my hand. But I realized last week that my attitude can't be second nature. It's my choice to be in this job and I choose it for a reason. I choose to wait on tables because it allows me to take time off in order to act when I want. I choose to wait on tables because it keeps me from monotonously answering the phone all day. I like the staff, I like moving, and when I can make someone's day by providing them with a special experience at the restaurant, I really like my job.

If you asked me what my dream job was, I would tell you, I would be an actor full time. I'd be getting paid to act on a regular basis. But even though that's what I'm passionate about, there are things that I'm sure I would get grumpy and jaded about as well. And while I do hope that's where my career is headed, I think it's healthy for me to start realizing this now. There is work involved in any job, no matter what the job is. I was reading an article this morning that put it like this:

"When it comes to our work, we choose to be passionate. Or not. We choose to be actively engaged. Or not. We choose to be conscientious. Or not. We choose to treat customers and colleagues with courtesy and consideration. Or not. We choose to give more than is expected. Or not. We choose to see ourselves as part of the big picture. Or not."

- "Myths About Passion and Your Art Career." Read more here.

No matter what I want to be my future reality, that white uniform is my immediate reality and I need to choose to engage in that business to be happy with it. I've got some auditions coming up that will hopefully be fruitful, but even if they're not, I've got to choose to be happy at a place that I'm spending 40 hours a week, or my outlook on life in general is going to suffer. So break out that vase of fall colored flowers, or a new smile for your day today and be PASSIONATE about one piece of your work day. I promise, it will make the rest of your week that much more enjoyable.